Rick Konrad

http://valuediscipline.blogspot.com
Total Rating:
0 / 0

5 Comments

    • Wed Aug 20th 08:36 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Looking Inside the New Ben Graham ETN Baskets
      I do appreciate the commentary from everyone.

      Mr. Carson, I especially appreciate your commentary regarding some dividend paying ETNs. The unique features of some of these ETNs are certainly worth exploring. Thanks again!
      View article »
    • Mon Jul 21st 17:06 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      What You Can - And Can't - Learn from Warren Buffett
      An excellent point. Contrary to what most people believe, WB, the consummate value investor made most of his returns in large cap growth stocks. As the research paper indicates:

      "Although beating the market in all but four years can statistically happen due to chance, incorporating the magnitude by which the portfolio beats the market makes a luck explanation extremely unlikely even after taking into account ex-post selection bias"

      The frequency of the great picks versus turkey picks has little to do with the end results; rather, it is the magnitude and scale of the victories that has made shareholders wealthy.

      TY for your comments!
      View article »
    • Mon Jul 21st 13:17 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      What You Can - And Can't - Learn from Warren Buffett
      Andydee...there are several Buffett books that I like. Robert Hagstrom's "Warren Buffett Way" provides some interesting case studies into the "why" of many Berkshire investments.

      Charlie Munger's clarity of thinking is renowned. One of the best ways to access his wisdom and wit (in that order) is "Poor Charlies' Almanac," a title that WB bestowed on this book and of course Charlie hates. It includes many snippets of quotes from his writings and speeches.

      Finally, a couple of other books I would recommend on investment thinking that lean heavily on Buffett and Munger. Peter Bevelin, a fellow Berkie shareholder and a brilliant thinker ( well, at least PB is a brilliant thinker) has written "Seeking Wisdom." Peter uses quotations from many authors to improve one's way of thinking. For example, on the topic of being wrong," A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying , in other words, that he is wiser today than he was yesterday." Unfortunately, what most of us do is what Buffett describes, "What the human being is best of doing, is interpreting all new information so that their prior conclusions remain intact."

      Another useful book in this regard is Lawrence Cunningham's "How to Think Like Benjamin Graham and Invest Like Warren Buffett." This is again a fairly enjoyable read. Cunningham is not a practitioner, but rather a teacher and professor. He admires these great investors "for their independence of thought, their utter and profound common sense, which led to their remarkable success."

      I think you will find all of these books very helpful additions to your investment library.


      On Jul 21 10:45 AM andydee wrote:

      > Rick,
      >
      > Well written, fair review.
      >
      > My question: I have a couple of Buffett books, (Lowenstein's, "The
      > W.B. Way", "Buffetology&... "Of Permanent Value") and "Security
      > Analysis" - but would like to round out my collection with a couple
      > on Charlie Munger, and more of your favorite Buffet books - do you
      > have any recommendations?
      View article »
    • Mon Jul 21st 11:30 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      What You Can - And Can't - Learn from Warren Buffett
      I appreciate everyone's comments. The success ratios for WB I suspect are well below 99%, my guess would be much closer to about 70%.

      This truly is a fascinating business where mediocrity of 50% (random success) can be achieved by a blind-folded ape. Sadly, many professional portfolios cannot achieve even mediocrity. What differentiates great managers is not only the frequency of success but the size and scale of that success.

      This is by its nature, a very humbling business where great managers have batting averages of .550 to .600. WB has a higher batting average but is truly a power hitter.

      I think the comments about globalization and emerging markets are fair comment for WB and for many value managers. Familiarity and comfort with US GAAP accounting is part of the rationale. IASB principles have only come together in the last five years or so...standardization has helped a great deal. An even more important aspect of avoiding emerging markets relates to significant differences in corporate governance practice.

      However, look to the record of Templeton who pioneered the practice of going global. Jean-Marie Eveillard is another champion of global value investing that I respect. Interestingly, though he currently has a bit of an aversion to U.S. stocks, Eveillard's largest position in the States is Berkshire Hathaway.

      Thank you again for your kind comments!
      View article »
    • Sat Jul 7th 18:35 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Why Homogeneous Thinking is Dangerous to Value Investors
      Thank you!

      Rick
      View article »
Loading...
Symbols:
Authors:
Quick Links:
Contribute an Article Become a Seeking Alpha Contributor

Transcripts

More Transcripts»