Posted on 05/19/2008 6:18:06 PM PDT by drbasketball
Kass made a fortune shorting housing stocks before the sub-prime crisis. This is an indication he thinks ahead, and certaiinly does not follow the crowd.
So what’s he short now, that the crowd wouldn’t dare short? He is short Berkshire Hathaway stock. Berkshire Hathaway is, of course, operated by master billionaire investor Warren Buffett. Kass has put together an 11 point research paper listing his reasons for shorting Berkshire.
In point 1, he writes, there will never be another Warren Buffett, which is just another way of saying when Buffett is gone the gig is over. Thus, in point 1, Kass is thinking about when the gig will be over.
In point 2, Kass tells us that Buffett is 78 years old and that the actuarial life expectancy for him is another nine years. But, he also points out that, ” his diet apparently consists almost entirely of unhealthy Cherry Cokes and cheeseburgers! ”
And then he launches into his first detailed warning of what could happen when Buffett isn’t making decisions at Berkshire:
…should he decide to begin to delegate responsibilities (sooner than later), it can be expected that many long-term investors in Berkshire will likely consider cashing out. Considering the shares’ liquidity (the average daily trading volume is roughly 1,000 shares) and the disproportionate role that Berkshire has on many individual and institutional investor Buffett devotees’ portfolios this could put pressure on the stock....
(Excerpt) Read more at nationaleconomist.com ...
Don’t be too sure you know what the market thinks. It might very well happen that Mr. Buffet should take his departure, and the stock, after an initial drop, go up.
I need to make money like Warren Buffet, so I can live like Jimmy Buffet.
Warren Buffet freely admits that over the last, say 10 years, it would have been better for the stock if he had done nothing. BRK.A is primarily an insurance company and they have to figure out how to spend the float. All Warrens replacement has to do is do nothing.
The Stock has fallen from 150k down to 120k or there about. I recommend that everyone should start dumping their shares, before they lose more money. Please : )
With that kind of money, I'd be eating cheeseburgers in paradise, too!
Yep, right before it drops again... more permanently.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.