Berkshire News Briefs - 9/28/15

Charlie Munger: Buffett’s ‘Abominable No-Man’ (Think Advisor)

Sharp as a tack and blunt as Lenny Bruce, Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s peppery longtime business partner, is the not-so-secret sauce in the Oracle of Omaha’s extraordinary investing success.

Munger, the curmudgeonly 91-year-old vice chairman of Buffett's holding company, Berkshire Hathaway, is a humorous, deep-thinking billionaire whose judgment has been indispensable to growing Berkshire into a $360 billion-plus enterprise. Indeed, last year it picked up $18.3 billion in net worth.

Now comes “Charlie Munger: The Complete Investor” (Columbia University Press-Columbia Business School Publishing), by Tren Griffin, a book that neatly ties together the astute nonagenarian’s investing acumen in just under 200 pages. [...]

Kraft Heinz, Phillips 66 Targeted by Fake Securities Filings (WSJ)

Two separate filings that said they were submitted by Loreto M. Zamora on behalf of LMZ & Berkshire Hathaway Co. to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday morning claimed to hold at least 10% stakes in both Kraft Heinz and Phillips 66.

Both companies told The Wall Street Journal that the filings are fraudulent and they have contacted the SEC. Warren Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway Inc. owns stakes in the food and energy companies, said in an email that he has never heard of Mr. Zamora. [...]

Could Warren Buffett's Utility Empire Be in Trouble? (Fool)

No matter where you look, particularly in Nevada, utilities are under serious pressure from customers looking to find lower-cost and cleaner energy elsewhere. Now that Buffett is one of the largest utility owners in the country, he's directly at odds with some of these trends.

Wynn Resorts is offering $15 million to break ties with NV Energy, and if it weren't for a limit on distributed solar in Nevada, there would be thousands of customers putting up their own generation systems.

The dual threat shows the challenge utilities are facing as the energy industry evolves. [...]

Borsheims CEO Goracke plans visit to share a wealth of retail knowledge with UNK students (Kearney Hub)

When Karen Goracke was approached to be University of Nebraska at Kearney’s Executive in Residence this fall she was at first surprised, then ecstatic. [...]

Giving back, by sharing her knowledge and ideas with students, is something the Borsheims CEO has been waiting to do. The College of Business and Technology Executive in Residence will give her that chance: To talk to students, visit with faculty and play a mentor role to anyone who wants to learn more about retail, Berkshire Hathaway, working for Warren Buffett, merchandising, accounting, sales – her list of what she wants to talk about is long. [...]

Perpetrators of a $10-Million Telemarketing Scam that Used Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway's Names as Baits (Realty Today)

According to the indictment, Jonathan Papa and Methsiri "Lal" Palliyaguru sold phony investments in certificates of deposit and real estate to nearly 200 investors, primarily American senior citizens. They knowingly misrepresented that Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway were involved with the purported real estate investments, in order to lure in unsuspecting investors who idolize Buffett and Hathaway.

Ndamukong Suh and Warren Buffett huddle up (Lincoln Journal Star)

[...] “Every time, we have a great conversation,” Suh said. “And they’re really conversations around the concepts of business or understanding commodities, how it can all work together. It’s not (Buffett saying), ‘You should go pick this stock.’

“He knows my goals, and he’s like, ‘You should think about this’ or ‘This is some advice from people I’ve worked with.’ It’s also him with open arms saying, if you want to learn about something else, if you want to learn about the aviation business — which is something I’m very into — he said, ‘I own NetJets’ and opened the door for me to go out and learn from those people.” [...]

Billionaire Warren Buffett is ready to sub in for Ndamukong Suh (CBS Sports)

When you're worth $70 billion you can do whatever you want and sometimes doing whatever you want includes showing up at a Dolphins game wearing shoulder pads and an Ndamukong Suh jersey.

That's exactly what billionaire Warren Buffett did on Sunday. The third-richest man in the world showed up on the Dolphins sideline before their game against Buffalo and Buffet definitely wasn't wearing his normal suit-and-tie combo. [...]

Berkshire Annual Meeting Briefs - 4/30/15

Today's post is all Annual Meeting news!

Why Buffett’s Capitalist Woodstock Won’t Endure Like Garcia Jams (Bloomberg)

Tens of thousands of people will gather at an Omaha, Nebraska, arena Saturday to listen to the billionaire and his sidekick, Charles Munger, entertain the crowd with their thoughts about business. As in years past, recording will be strictly off limits.

The prohibition makes the session a must-attend event for investors and financial journalists, who pay jacked-up airfares and hotel rates to be there when two of the business world’s rock stars open their mouths. It also highlights the leeway corporations have in organizing their annual meetings with shareholders.

“There is no legal obligation to make a transcript available, or to allow recording of an event that is otherwise public,” said Joseph Grundfest, a professor at Stanford Law School and a former member of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. [...]

Warren Buffett watch: Oracle to be less visible at shareholder festivities (Omaha World-Herald)

Warren Buffett will be somewhat less visible at next weekend’s festivities for Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders, which seems to continue a trend that he and longtime partner Charlie Munger have followed in recent years.

15 Things to Expect at Berkshire Hathaway's Annual Meeting This Weekend (Fool)

There are certain things that Buffett-watchers can expect every year from the meeting, but every year's meeting is a bit different. And this year promises to be particularly memorable, as it marks the 50-year anniversary of Buffett and Munger at the helm of Berkshire.

So what exactly should we expect from this year's edition of the Woodstock for Capitalists? Let's see...

11 quirky events Warren Buffett's 'ringmaster' is planning for Berkshire's blowout this weekend (Business Insider)

Carrie Sova spends the better part of nine months a year planning the annual meeting, reported the Wall Street Journal's Anupreeta Das – from hiring an outside design firm to organize the 40 companies at the exhibition to that time she had to figure out how to park a real Burlington Northern train outside the downtown Omaha hall.

Whatever Buffett’s whims may be, Sova is the one to carry them out: “The big picture—any of the really good concepts . . . stemmed from Warren, and the little details of making all of it come together were worked out by our staff,” Sova, 30, who was Buffett's second assistant before becoming his "ringmaster," told the Journal.

Finally, in case you're going to the annual meeting and want to bring me back something as a gift...

Business Wire Raises Money for Children's Charity at the 2015 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting (BusinessWire)

At this year’s Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting on May 2, Business Wire will once again be raising money for charity selling commemorative gold-colored themed tumblers that benefit a local youth organization.

“What a great opportunity to raise awareness while generating much-needed funds to support advocates for children within the court system. Every dollar that Business Wire raises ultimately helps transform a child’s future,” said Kimberly Thomas, Executive Director of CASA for Douglas County.

A popular show tradition, Business Wire's fundraiser mementos provide Berkshire Hathaway shareholders with creative, limited edition keepsakes that mark the theme of the year’s gathering.

For 2015, Business Wire features a Berkshire Hathaway 50th anniversary coffee tumbler, available for $10 each.

50-Carat Rare Diamond On Display For Berkshire Hathaway's 50th (WOWT)

It may be called the Golden Jubilee, but Borsheim's is celebrating 50 years of Berkshire Hathaway with diamonds!

A 50-carat fancy yellow diamond ring, a set of Exceptional Diamonds from Forevermark, and a limited collection of loose diamonds with Warren Buffett’s signature engraved on the culet will all be available for Berkshire Hathaway shareholders to see and purchase at Borsheim's during Berkshire Hathaway shareholders weekend.

The diamonds are incredibly rare. The 50-carat cushion cut diamond ring is a natural fancy yellow color and retails for $2.3 million. A Berkshire Hathaway shareholder can take it home for just over $1.7 million.

(And don't forget the Brooks Buffett-themed running shoe that I posted last month. I'm a size 10.)

Berkshire News Briefs - 10/10/13

Scripps News investigates lawsuits involving Berkshire Hathaway (Scripps)

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. of Omaha, Neb., has become one of the most powerful forces in asbestos and pollution litigation in the world. Insurers such as American Insurance Group, CNA Financial Corp. and Lloyd's of London have paid Berkshire to assume their risk for tens of billions of dollars in future asbestos and pollution claims. That money, known as "float," has proven to be a great source of investment income for Berkshire. But instead of paying people like Charles Lute, Berkshire subsidiaries are accused in lawsuits across the country of delaying or denying payments. Rather than paying victims, the suits claim, Berkshire is holding onto the cash, the float, to keep its money invested. "They wanted to hit the projected numbers in the books of business so they could maximize their return on investment," said one former claims executive under oath.

Here's the full Scripps report, including Berkshire's response.

Ford, Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary settle insurance dispute (Cleveland News 5)

(There's a 1:30 video version of the story here too, if you want a summary.)

The Ford Motor Co. announced Monday it settled a lawsuit with Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary National Indemnity Co. for $22.1 million -- $2 million more than the automaker sued for in the dispute related to unpaid claims from rollover deaths. [...] “We filed the complaint because we were experiencing no pay and slow pay,” Oostdyk said, claiming National Indemnity intentionally delayed paying Ford’s claims as part of a larger pattern of wrongful conduct. [...] In this instance, Oostdyk said, Ford wanted to send a message, and refused in negotiations to settle the claim until National Indemnity agreed to let it announce the amount of the settlement. New York asbestos attorney Joe Belluck said the scrutiny of Berkshire’s business practices leading up to the publication of the Scripps investigation “likely played a part” in the Ford settlement before a public trial.

Moving on to better news...

Buffett Makes Sweet Profit Off Mars Investment (Wall St. Cheat Sheet)

Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett has logged a lot of wins in the wake of the late-2000s crisis. During the crisis itself, the firm served as a white knight investor to major companies with a need for a huge amount of cash, and fast. [...] One of the companies that Berkshire lent money to was Mars Inc., which in 2008 needed to finance the $23 billion purchase of Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. Buffett loaned Mars $4.4 billion and purchased a minority interest in Wrigley for $2.1 billion at a discount to the buyout price. [...] The Wall Street Journal reports that Berkshire is set to bank a profit of at least $680 million from the deal. Berkshire sold the notes back to Mars at about 115 percent of face value plus interest.

Buffett's $2.15 Billion Payday (Fool)

On Tuesday, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway was set to become the sixth-largest external investor in Goldman Sachs by grabbing a stake in the banking giant worth around $2.15 billion. Oh, and did I mention Buffett scored the position for free? You read that correctly. That's right. For his mammoth stake in Goldman Sachs, Buffett paid absolutely nothing.

Warren Buffett protégé in trouble at Benjamin Moore (NY Post)

Tracy Britt, a handpicked favorite of Buffett who has an office down the hall to his at Berkshire’s Omaha headquarters, was tapped last year to tackle Benjamin Moore’s sliding market share and serves as the company’s chairman. Late last month, sources said, Britt led a Friday afternoon conference call with Benjamin Moore employees, surprising them with the news that CEO Bob Merritt had abruptly left the company after just 14 months on the job. [...] The bombshell exit of Merritt, a former restaurant exec tapped last year to reverse a tailspin at Benjamin Moore, is a rare embarrassment for Buffett, who had fired Merritt’s predecessor, Denis Abrams, just 15 months earlier. The reason for 61-year-old Merritt’s departure couldn’t be confirmed, but some insiders say he appears to have clashed with Britt.

Berkshire Hathaway unit TTI buys Lod-based Ray-Q (Globes)

On Friday, TTI, Inc. an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, announced the acquisition of Lod-based Ray-Q Interconnect. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Ray-Q was founded in 1969 as a Raychem subsidiary based in Israel with offices in Turkey and India. It provides high quality electrical interconnect solutions to military, aerospace and other high-reliability product industries. TTI is a specialty distributor of passive, interconnect, electromechanical and discrete semiconductor components. [...] Ray-Q employs approximately 70 associates and counts among their customers virtually every major defense contractor.

Warren Buffett's pick for Borsheims CEO took six-year break on rise to the top (Omaha World-Herald)

In fall 2004, Susan Jacques, president and chief executive of Borsheims Fine Jewelry, ran into Karen Goracke at a soccer game. Goracke had been a watch buyer at Borsheims until leaving in 1998 to tend to her growing family. “I said, 'Why don't you come back and work part time?' ” Jacques recalled. [...] Now Goracke has been chosen by Warren Buffett to be the Berkshire Hathaway-owned retailer's president and chief executive starting Dec. 31. [...] Jacques is leaving Borsheims after 31 years, including 20 years as president and CEO, to head the Gemological Institute of America, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based nonprofit organization that offers gem and jewelry education and oversees industry standards.

Berkshire News Briefs - 9/15/13

AIG Said to Opt Against Buffett Reinsurance Amid Clash (Bloomberg)

American International Group Inc. (AIG) has decided against signing new reinsurance contracts with Berkshire Hathaway Inc. after Warren Buffett’s company started a commercial insurer competing against AIG, according to a person with knowledge of the decision. [...] Buffett said in May he was planning to add sales of commercial insurance after hiring executives from AIG including Peter Eastwood, who ran the company’s property-casualty operation in the Americas. The move challenges New York-based AIG in one of its main markets and expands Berkshire beyond its strengths in U.S. personal auto coverage and reinsurance.

Berkshire ‘A’ Shares, Soon Available In Pennies (WSJ)

Starting Sept. 16, the New York Stock Exchange plans to begin trading and quoting Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in pennies, according to a Thursday notice from the exchange. That means that the stock’s mammoth price – $168,180 on Thursday afternoon – will move in one-cent increments, rather than the current ten cents.

Improved Underwriting Results Boost RAA Companies' 1H Net Income (Property Casualty 360)

A group of 18 reinsurers belonging to the Reinsurance Association of America reported a combined 2013 first-half net income of just under $4.8 billion, up from $3.6 billion for the same companies a year ago, as improved underwriting income more than offset a slight drop in net premiums written. Similar to 2012’s first half, Berkshire Hathaway’s National Indemnity Co. accounted for over half of the group’s net income in the first six months of this year. National Indemnity reported just under $3 billion in first-half net income, far outpacing Transatlantic Reinsurance, which placed second among the group with $364.4 million in net income.

U.S. judge approves $72 mln fraud pact with Berkshire's Gen Re (Reuters)

A U.S. judge on Tuesday approved a $72 million settlement by Berkshire Hathaway Inc's General Re Corp to resolve claims that it engaged in a sham deal that helped fraudulently inflate American International Group Inc's loss reserves. The settlement's approval brings to an end nine years of shareholder litigation revolving around AIG accounting practices dating to 1999.

Shaw Industries opens carpet tile plant in China (Fibre 2 Fashion)

Berkshire Hathaway’s Shaw Industries Group, Inc. (Shaw) has announced its grand opening of a 210,000-square-foot carpet tile plant in Nantong, China – a port city 65 miles north of Shanghai. This facility offers customers in Asia quicker access to a wider range of completely recyclable, Cradle-to-Cradle-certified products, which are PVC-free and bitumen-free. [...] Expected to employ approximately 250 at full capacity, over 100 Shaw associates are onboard at this time. [...] Products manufactured in China will be sold for installation in the growing Asia market and there are no plans to export them back to the U.S.

SidePlate’s Active Projects More Than Double in 36 Months (Herald Online)

SidePlate®, a Berkshire Hathaway company that designs innovative steel building connections, today announced that it has doubled its employee base in the last 36 months to accommodate rising demand for its consulting and project-management services. As another indicator of the Company’s dramatic growth, SidePlate’s active projects have more than doubled since July 2010. [...] In 2009, Berkshire Hathaway’s MiTek® acquired SidePlate because of the Company’s sterling reputation, its innovative consulting services and technology, and its potential for the very growth that SidePlate is experiencing today.

Truss and Wall-Panel Component Manufacturers Stand Ready to Respond to Framing Labor Shortage (Herald Online)

“Housing starts are showing sustained growth, and they are predicted to spike to a run rate of 1.3 million by the end of 2014, and 1.5 million in 2015,” said MiTek’s Gregg Renner. “That’s good news, but it also indicates that the framing labor shortage won’t ease, and builders need a different approach to framing houses. That’s what MiTek’s component manufacturers offer.”

Berkshire’s Richline Makes Jewelry Deal With American Greetings (Bloomberg)

Richline Group Inc., owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., reached a deal to make and distribute jewelry featuring the artwork from cards produced by American Greetings Corp. [...] Richline also has relationships with the Marie Claire brand and the National Football League.

Borsheims to open second location at Nebraska Crossing Outlets (Omaha World-Herald)

For more than a half-century, Borsheims, Omaha's iconic jeweler, has limited itself to a single store. But this fall the Berkshire Hathaway-owned retailer will break tradition and open a second location — an outlet store at Nebraska Crossing Outlets in Gretna. The outlet store, opening Nov. 15 under the banner Borsheims Boutique, will occupy a 5,500-square-foot space next to the Coach factory store.

BNSF to spend $110 million on projects in Nebraska (Omaha World-Herald)

BNSF Railway Co. on Thursday announced plans to invest about $110 million this year in maintenance and rail capacity expansion projects in Nebraska. [...] BNSF also plans to invest $35 million this year in Iowa, which is part of the railroad’s total 2013 capital investment of $4.3 billion, a record for the company. [...] Omaha-based Union Pacific’s 2013 capital investment numbers aren’t yet available, but last year the company spent about $303 million in Nebraska and $3.7 billion total on its network.

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Signs Nine More Affiliates (Fort Mill Times)

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, the new real estate brokerage network operated by HSF Affiliates LLC, today announced the signing of nine more brokerage companies for the network. The companies include: Prudential Anderson Properties, Houston, TX; Prudential California Realty, Cerritos, CA; Prudential Canyon Lake Realty, Canyon Lake, CA; Prudential Gallo, REALTORS®, Rehoboth Beach, DE; Prudential Serls Prime Properties, Lagrangeville, NY; Prudential Southeast Coastal Properties, Savannah, GA; Prudential Texas Realty, Austin, TX; Prudential Tropical Realty, Tampa Bay, FL; and Prudential Woodmont Realty, Nashville, TN. The brokerages will begin operating under the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices flag as early as the fourth quarter of 2013. They are the latest in a series of brokerage signees announced by the new real estate network, whose total members now represent more than $1 billion in annual gross commission income.