Warren Buffett reveals his investment strategy and mastering the market (PART 3).

Warren Buffett reveals his investment strategy and mastering the market (PART 3).

ANDY SEWER: Right. Why don't we do an update about the Health Care Initiative, which now, the company has a name-- Haven. Was that your idea?

WARREN BUFFETT: No. I didn't worry about a name. We could've gone on as a no-name operation for 10 years, as far as I'm concerned. We've got a wonderful partnership in the sense that it's large and has reasonable market muscle, with more than a million employees among the three of us.

We've got three CEOs that can make things get done and organizations that so are so big that normally, they wouldn't get very bureaucratic. If you tried to do this with many big companies, you'd have legal weighing in and public relations weighing in. We don't have any of that stuff.

They may have them in certain areas, but Jamie hasn't got to worry about doing that sort of thing and neither does Jeff. So we've got a unity of commitment and an ability to execute on the commitment. The only problem is, you've got a $3.4 trillion dollar industry, which is as much as the federal government raises every year, that, basically, feels pretty good about the system.

As we went around talking to people to find a leader for the group, for example, everybody says, the system, it turns out very good medicine. But you can't go from 5% of GDP to 18% without really making you less competitive, among other things, in the world. So everybody thought the system needed some adjustment, just not their part of the system. And that's very human. I'd do the same thing, I'm sure, if I was in the same place.

So there's enormous resistance to change, while a similar acknowledgment the change will be needed. And, of course, if the private sector doesn't supply that over a period of time, people will say, then, we give up. We've got to turn this over to government, which will probably be even worse.

ANDY SEWER: How often do you talk to Jamie and Jeff about it? I know Todd Combs, I think, is your point person.

WARREN BUFFETT: Todd really does all the work. If this works, give Todd 100% of the credit from the Berkshire standpoint.

ANDY SEWER: Does Haven have to buy companies to gain expertise? What do you--

WARREN BUFFETT: No.

ANDY SEWER: What is the plan?

WARREN BUFFETT: The plan is to support a very, very, very good thinker on this subject, who is a practicing physician and who commands the respect of the medical community, to, in effect, figure out some way, so that we can deliver even better care and have people feel better about their care, too. They have to perceive that they're receiving better care over time and stop the march upward of costs relative to the country's output.

We've got this incredible economic machine, but we shouldn't be spending 18% when other countries are doing something pretty comparable in terms of doctors per capita, hospital beds per capita, and all that. The very top stuff in medicine, I think, is very much concentrated in this country, and that's great.

I want us to be the leader, but I think we're paying a price. If we're paying seven extra points of GDP, that's $1.4 trillion a year.

ANDY SEWER: Is the administration focusing-- by focusing on drug prices, is that sort of a rabbit hole? Is that missing the bigger picture?

WARREN BUFFETT: They're trying. And Congress, generally-- I mean, you talk to the average congressmen-- they regard it as a problem. And they see specific instances of drug prices or something like that.

It's a big problem to change. The problem is, it intersects in so many ways. And that's why we've got Gawande heading it, and We've got three bigger-sized organizations backing him. We're not trying to do it to make money. That is not a goal that we end up with some business that we make money off of.

ANDY SEWER: Will he be talking to health insurers, for instance?

WARREN BUFFETT: He'll be talking to everybody. His game plan is not something we're going to try and lay out, because it's in his head, to some degree. I mean, obviously, we selected him by hearing, and reading, and so on what he's done.

But he'll learn as we go. We will conduct certain experiments, or he will, and try out a community, where one of us has a lot of employees maybe. There are various ways to experiment.

ANDY SEWER: Shifting gears, where do you find things like that Abe Lincoln tail-and-leg quotes? Do you read Bartlett's book of quotations--

WARREN BUFFETT: No, I don't read, but probably 50 years ago, I looked at a few Bartlett's quotations. But I read a lot and--

ANDY SEWER: Do you just remember these things and apply them?

WARREN BUFFETT: Well, if you're 88 years old, I mean, you ought to remember something. You don't remember what happened yesterday, but you remember the old stuff. You've got a lot of interesting quotations in your head.

ANDY SEWER: Yeah, but not like you do, I think. That's great. OK, so one company you invested in was GE, and you did well with that investment.

WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, I was too early, actually. If you look back, I was very active in the last half of September and early October. And then I wrote that article in later October. And I knew it was going to get bad. I wrote in the article, it was going to get bad.

But I didn't think the stock market would react as much as it did between then and March. So I had, more or less, used up our powder well before the bottom was hit.

ANDY SEWER: That's interesting. How have you avoided not getting back into GE more recently? I mean, I'm sure that they've reached out to. Everyone says, why doesn't Warren Buffett invest in GE, and save it, and take it to the promised land? It's this great American company.

WARREN BUFFETT: Well, actually, I think Larry is actually doing a good job.

ANDY SEWER: Larry Culp?

WARREN BUFFETT: The Danaher. Yeah, Larry Culp at the Danaher is a good sell, and, I think, his priorities are straight. And, I think, he's a very able guy, and he's on the right track. And I'm a I'm a fan of GE's in the sense that we're a big buyer from them. We're a big seller to them. I know them, the managers.

Jack Welch is a very good friend of mine. We don't agree on politics 100%, but we have a lot of fun together, and I love the guy. So I've got a great desire for GE to do well. It just hasn't looked that attractive to me.

ANDY SEWER: You talked about the groves of trees in the letters shareholder. One was the third grove, which was sort of the in-between stakes.

WARREN BUFFETT: Yeah, the equity interests.

ANDY SEWER: Yeah. Is it is it the case that those are sort of not the healthiest grove of trees? And why would that be?

WARREN BUFFETT: No, Pilot Flying J is very-- there are companies that, under GAAP accounting, we have the record under equity method. We own more than 20%, but we don't control them. So it's treated under GAAP accounting as a special category. It didn't fit well in the other grove, so I had to make it a separate grove by itself. It's not that significant a grove.

ANDY SEWER: You say that the sum of Berkshire has a greater valuation than the parts.

WARREN BUFFETT: That is true.

ANDY SEWER: Did you ever try to calculate that? How much is that?

WARREN BUFFETT: Well, that depends on circumstances. There's some times when the float from insurers can be very valuable. There are some times when the ability to use production tax credits will stay in the utility business, but have been on as part of our consolidated return, helps. But that varies a lot. But it is a plus, and we can move capital.

Take a business like See's Candy, which we bought 40-odd years ago. It's a wonderful little business. It's put us out of capital. We've tried 50 different ways to expand geographically, do all kinds of things. Doesn't work. And we'll try it again, and it won't work. But we can move that capital to help buy BNSF Railroad or do all kinds of other things.

So we've got a seamless and tax-efficient way of moving capital where it's needed. And we've got some companies that really chew up capital, and we've got others that kick it off. And we can move it from one spot-- If you try to do that with your investments, you'll incur some taxes as you go along doing it. It's less efficient than what we've gotten.

TO BE CONTINUED

July 31, 2020

How did Warren Buffett get started in business?

How did Warren Buffett get started in business?

By BRENT RADCLIFFE.
Warren Buffett may have been born with business in his blood. He purchased his first stock when he was 11 years old and worked in his family’s grocery store in Omaha.
His father, Howard Buffett, owned a small brokerage, and Warren would spend his days watching what investors were doing and listening to what they said. As a teenager, he took odd jobs, from washing cars to delivering newspapers, using his savings to purchase several pinball machines that he placed in local businesses.

His entrepreneurial successes as a youth did not immediately translate into a desire to attend college. His father pressed him to continue his education, with Buffett reluctantly agreeing to attend the University of Pennsylvania. He then transferred to the University of Nebraska, where he graduated with a degree in business in three years.

After being rejected by the Harvard Business School, he enrolled in graduate studies at Columbia Business School. While there, he studied under Benjamin Graham – who became a lifelong friend – and David Dodd, both well-known securities analysts. It was through Graham's class in securities analysis that Buffett learned the fundamentals of value investing. He once stated in an interview that Graham's book, The Intelligent Investor, had changed his life and set him on the path of professional analysis to the investment markets. Along with Security Analysis, co-written by Graham and Dodd it provided him the proper intellectual framework and a road map for investing.

Benjamin Graham and The Intelligent Investor.
Graham is often called the "Dean of Wall Street" and the father of value investing, as one of the most important early proponents of financial security analysis. He championed the idea that the investor should look at the market as though it were an actual entity and potential business partner – Graham called this entity "Mr. Market" – that sometimes asks for too much or too little money to be bought out.

It would be difficult to summarize all of Graham's theories in full. At its core, value investing is about identifying stocks that have been undervalued by the majority of stock market participants. He believed that stock prices were frequently wrong due to irrational and excessive price fluctuations (both upside and downside). Intelligent investors, said Graham, need to be firm in their principles and not follow the crowd.
Graham wrote The Intelligent Investor in 1949 as a guide for the common investor. The book championed the idea of buying low-risk securities in a highly diversified, mathematical way. Graham favored fundamental analysis, capitalizing on the difference between a stock's purchase price and its intrinsic value.

Entering the Investment Field.
Before working for Benjamin Graham, Warren had been an investment salesman – a job that he liked doing, except when the stocks he suggested dropped in value and lost money for his clients. To minimize the potential of having irate clients, Warren started a partnership with his close friends and family. The partnership had unique restrictions attached to it. Warren himself would invest only $100 and, through re-invested management fees, would grow his stake in the partnership. Warren would take half of the partnership’s gains over 4% and would repay the partnership a quarter of any loss incurred. Furthermore, money could only be added or withdrawn from the partnership on December 31st, and partners would have no input about the investments in the partnership.

By 1959, Warren had opened a total of seven partnerships and had a 9.5% stake in more than a million dollars of partnership assets. Three years later by the time he was 30, Warren was a millionaire and merged all of his partnerships into a single entity.
It was at this point that Buffett’s sights turned to directly investing in businesses. He made a $1 million investment in a windmill manufacturing company, and the next year in a bottling company. Buffett used the value-investing techniques he learned in school, as well as his knack for understanding the general business environment, to find bargains on the stock market.

Buying Berkshire Hathaway.
In 1962, Warren saw an opportunity to invest in a New England textile company called Berkshire Hathaway and bought some of its stock. Warren began to aggressively buy shares after a dispute with its management convinced him that the company needed a change in leadership..  Ironically, the purchase of Berkshire Hathaway is one of Warren’s major regrets.
Understanding the beauty of owning insurance companies – clients pay premiums today to possibly receive payments decades later – Warren used Berkshire Hathaway as a holding company to buy National Indemnity Company (the first of many insurance companies he would buy) and used its substantial cash flow to finance further acquisitions.

As a value investor, Warren is a sort of jack-of-all-trades when it comes to industry knowledge. Berkshire Hathaway is a great example. Buffett saw a company that was cheap and bought it, regardless of the fact that he wasn’t an expert in textile manufacturing. Gradually, Buffett shifted Berkshire’s focus away from its traditional endeavors, instead using it as a holding company to invest in other businesses. Over the decades, Warren has bought, held and sold companies in a variety of different industries.

Some of Berkshire Hathaway’s most well-known subsidiaries include, but are not limited to, GEICO (yes, that little Gecko belongs to Warren Buffett), Dairy Queen, NetJets, Benjamin Moore & Co., and Fruit of the Loom.  Again, these are only a handful of companies of which Berkshire Hathaway has a majority share.
The company also has interests in many other companies, including American Express Co. (AXP), Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST), DirectTV (DTV), General Electric Co. (GE), General Motors Co. (GM), Coca-Cola Co. (KO), International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), Proctor & Gamble Co. (PG) and Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC).

Berkshire Woes and Rewards.
Business for Buffett hasn’t always been rosy, though. In 1975, Buffett and his business partner, Charlie Munger, were investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for fraud. The two maintained that they had done nothing wrong and that the purchase of Wesco Financial Corporation only looked suspicious because of their complex system of businesses.
Further trouble came with a large investment in Salomon Inc. In 1991, news broke of a trader breaking Treasury bidding rules on multiple occasions, and only through intense negotiations with the Treasury did Buffett manage to stave off a ban on buying Treasury notes and subsequent bankruptcy for the firm.
In more recent years, Buffett has acted as a financier and facilitator of major transactions. During the Great Recession, Warren invested and lent money to companies that were facing financial disaster. Roughly 10 years later, the effects of these transactions are surfacing and they’re enormous.

A loan to Mars Inc. resulted in a $680 million profit.
Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), of which Berkshire Hathaway bought almost 120 million shares during the Great Recession, is up more than 7 times from its 2009.
American Express Co. (AXP) is up about five times since Warren’s investment in 200813
Bank of America Corp. (BAC) pays $300 million a year and Berkshire Hathaway has the option to buy additional shares at around $7 each – less than half of what it trades at today.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) paid out $500 million in dividends a year and a $500 million redemption bonus when they repurchased the shares.

Most recently, Warren has partnered up with 3G Capital to merge J.H. Heinz Company and Kraft Foods to create the Kraft Heinz Food Company (KHC). The new company is the third largest food and beverage company in North America and fifth largest in the world, and boasts annual revenues of $28 billion. In 2017, he bought up a significant stake in Pilot Travel Centers, the owners of the Pilot Flying J chain of truck stops. He will become a majority owner over a six-year period.
Modesty and quiet living meant that it took Forbes some time to notice Warren and add him to the list of richest Americans, but when they finally did in 1985, he was already a billionaire. Early investors in Berkshire Hathaway could have bought in as low as $275 a share and by 2014 the stock price had reached $200,000, and was trading just under $300,000 earlier this year.

Comparing Buffett to Graham.
Buffett has referred to himself as "85% Graham." Like his mentor, he has focused on company fundamentals and a "stay the course" approach – an approach that enabled both men to build huge personal nest eggs. Seeking a seeks a strong return on investment (ROI), Buffett typically looks for stocks that are valued accurately and offer robust returns for investors.
However, Buffett invests using a more qualitative and concentrated approach than Graham did. Graham preferred to find undervalued, average companies and diversify his holdings among them; Buffett favors quality businesses that already have reasonable valuations (though their stock should still be worth something more) and the ability for large growth.

Other differences lie in how to set intrinsic value, when to take a chance and how deeply to dive into a company that has potential. Graham relied on quantitative methods to a far greater extent than Buffett, who spends his time actually visiting companies, talking with management and understanding the corporate's particular business model. As a result, Graham was more able to and more comfortable investing in lots of smaller companies than Buffett. Consider a baseball analogy: Graham was concerned about swinging at good pitches and getting on base; Buffett prefers to wait for pitches that allow him to score a home run. Many have credited Buffett with having a natural gift for timing that cannot be replicated, whereas Graham's method is friendlier to the average investor.

Buffett Fun Facts.
Buffett only began making large-scale charitable donations at age 75.
Buffett has made some interesting observations about income taxes. Specifically, he's questioned why his effective capital gains tax rate of around 20% is a lower income tax rate than that of his secretary – or for that matter, than that paid by most middle-class hourly or salaried workers. As one of the two or three richest men in the world, having long ago established a mass of wealth that virtually no amount of future taxation can seriously dent, Mr. Buffett offers his opinion from a state of relative financial security that is pretty much without parallel. Even if, for example, every future dollar Warren Buffett earns is taxed at the rate of 99%, it is doubtful that it would affect his standard of living.

Buffett has described The Intelligent Investor as the best book on investing that he has ever read, with Security Analysis a close second. Other favorite reading matter includes:
Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits by Philip A. Fisher, which advises potential investors to not only examine a company's financial statements but to evaluate its management. Fisher focuses on investing in innovative companies, and Buffett has long held him in high regard.
The Outsiders by William N. Thorndike profiles eight CEOs and their blueprints for success. Among the profiled is Thomas Murphy, friend to Warren Buffett and director for Berkshire Hathaway. Buffett has praised Murphy, calling him "overall the best business manager I've ever met."
Stress Test by former Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy F. Geithner, chronicles the financial crisis of 2008-9 from a gritty, first-person perspective. Buffett has called it a must-read for managers, a textbook for how to stay level under unimaginable pressure.
Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street by John Brooks is a collection of articles published in The New Yorker in the 1960s. Each tackles famous failures in the business world, depicting them as cautionary tales. Buffett lent his copy of it to Bill Gates, who reportedly has yet to return it.

The Bottom Line.
Warren Buffett’s investments haven't always been successful, but they were well-thought-out and followed value principles. By keeping an eye out for new opportunities and sticking to a consistent strategy, Buffett and the textile company he acquired long ago are considered by many to be one of the most successful investing stories of all time. But you don't have to be a genius "to invest successfully over a lifetime," the man himself claims. "What's needed is a sound intellectual framework for making decisions and the ability to keep emotions from corroding that framework."

August 04, 2020

Best colleges in australia

FAQ Best colleges in australia

What are the best colleges in Australia?
Top Universities in Australia 2018
Australian National University (ANU)
University of Melbourne.
University of New South Wales (UNSW)
University of Queensland (UQ)
University of Sydney.
Monash University.
University of Western Australia (UWA)
University of Adelaide.

What is the number 1 University in Australia?
The Australian National University (ANU) is ranked the best in Australia for studying linguistics, overtaking the University of Melbourne and climbing 14 places to rank 13th. 13 more Australian universities are in this year's ranking.

Which Melbourne University is best?
Based on the QS World University Rankings®, here are the seven top universities in Melbourne, each with much to offer prospective students.
University of Melbourne.
Monash University.
RMIT University (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology)
Deakin University.
La Trobe University.
Victoria University.

What is the highest ranking university in Australia?
The other 27 top Australian universities this year, in order of how they ranked, are:
University of Wollongong– ranked joint 218th in the world.
Queensland University of Technology (QUT) – ranked joint 244th in the world.

What is the best online university in Australia?
That's how we've ranked Australia's top online universities.
...
Top 5 Online Universities in Australia
University of New England. ...
Deakin University. ...
Charles Sturt University. ...
University of Southern Queensland. ...
Edith Cowan University.

How much is a degree in Australia?
Study in Australia, the official government site for international students, gives the typical annual tuition fees for international graduate students as: Master's degree – AU$20,000 (US$14,400) to $37,000 (US$26,600); Doctoral degree – AU$14,000 (US$10,060) to $37,000 (US$26,600).

Which is the cheapest university or colleges in Australia?

The tuition fees list shows that the cheapest Australian universities for international students include:
University of the Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast)
University of Southern Queensland (Toowoomba)
Southern Cross University (Lismore).
Charles Darwin University (Darwin)
University of New England (Armidale).

What is the oldest university in Australia?
University of Sydney
Did you know…? The oldest university in Asia was founded in 1611 (University of Santo Tomas, the Philippines), the oldest university in the US was established in 1636 (Harvard University, Massachusetts), and the oldest university in Australia was established in 1850 (University of Sydney, New South Wales).J

What is Australian National University known for?
ANU is regarded as one of the world's leading research universities. It is ranked 1st in Australia and the whole of Oceania, 24th in the world by the 2019 QS World University Rankings, and 49th in the world (second in Australia) by the 2019 Times Higher Education.

Which university in Australia is best for information technology?
University of Melbourne. University of Sydney. Australian National University (ANU) Western Sydney University – cheaper but also lower ranking.
...
Highlights of the pricing versus ranking comparison
University of Technology Sydney.
University of New South Wales (UNSW)
RMIT University.
University of Newcastle.

What is the best university for medicine in Australia?
The Top 10 Australian Universities for Medicine
University of Melbourne. ...
Monash University. ...
Flinders University. ...
Deakin University. ...
Tasmania University. ...
University of Queensland. ...
University of Adelaide. ...
James Cook University Medical School. JCU is acknowledged as Australia's leading tropical research school, with campuses in Australia and Singapore.

What is the best degree to study in Australia?
Top Courses to Study in Australia for Getting Jobs and Post-Study Work Opportunities
Accountancy. ...
Actuarial Science. ...
Agricultural Sciences. ...
Architecture. ...
Biomedical Engineering. ...
Core Engineering. ...
Earth Sciences and Related Fields. ...
Computer Science & Information Technology (IT)

Is college in Australia free?
Australian College Plan Has Helped Students, at a Cost. ... Australia was the first country to make higher education free at the point of entry, but then require repayment based on a percentage of future income.

Is PhD free in Australia?
There's a good chance that you won't pay your full international fees as a PhD student in Australia. ... Research training program funding is available for domestic and international PhD students in Australia.

Why Australia is the best country to study?
Australia is currently the third most popular destination for international students in the English-speaking world, behind the United States and the UK. Many international students choose to study there because of the cultural diversity, friendly natives, and high quality of education

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May 26, 2019

Dyslexia college scholarships

FAQ Dyslexia college scholarships

Scholarships for Students with Learning Disabilities
AAHD Frederick J. ...
The Ability Center of Greater Toledo Scholarships.
The Allegra Ford Thomas Scholarship.
The Anne Ford Scholarship.
American Library Association Century Scholarship.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation.
Bennett A. ...
BMO Capital Markets Lime Connect Equity Through Education Scholarship.

Can you get a scholarship for being dyslexic?
Students majoring in special education are eligible for the Special Education Scholarship. ... Joseph James Morelli Scholarship: This $500–$2,500 scholarship supports high school and college students with dyslexia, dysgraphia and/or dyscalculia who wish to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

Can you get a scholarship for having ADD?
The Anne Ford Scholarship is supported by the National Center for Learning Disabilities. The $10,000 scholarship is open to graduating high school seniors with a documented learning disability. Students must be enrolled full time in a bachelor degree program at an accredited college or university.

Can dyslexic kids go to college?
The good news is that even though kids with dyslexia will always have to work harder at reading than other kids, for most of them college will be within reach. By law, students with disabilities are guaranteed the right to appropriate accommodations in college, and there is technology that can be a great help to them.

How do dyslexics survive college?
How to Survive College with Dyslexia
Use audio books. Whenever possible, and if available, use audio books to help supplement your reading for better comprehension. ...
Use educational videos to reinforce your learning.
Study in groups and vocalize questions.
Try a "dyslexic font."
Don't put yourself in a dyslexic "box".

How can you help a dyslexic student?
Go into detail. Kids with reading difficulties may need help when it comes to noticing all the details in a new word—especially if the word has an unusual spelling. Take the word through, for example. Teach your child by first showing her the word and then reading it out loud.

How can you improve dyslexia?
Dyslexia Spelling Tips
Grade based on the purpose of the exercise. Don't dock points for spelling. ...
Provide awareness for incorrect spelling patterns. ...
Incorporate dictation to improve phonological processing. ...
Present additional opportunities to reinforce skills. ...
Be patient and understand that spelling gains take time.

Is ADHD a disability for college?
That could be ADHD, a learning disability, or any other medical, emotional, or physical condition that substantially limits one or more major life activities, including learning or concentration. ... If you didn't have a 504 Plan or IEP, you may qualify for accommodations if you can provide documentation of a disability.

Is there funding for ADHD?

In Australia, children with disabilities only receive additional government funding if they fall into a recognised disability category. ... For example, in many systems attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) falls outside the eligible funding box, whereas autism spectrum disorder (ASD) does not.Jan 26, 2016

What are the best colleges for learning disabilities?
The cost of this learning disabilities college program is just $4500 for one year (on top of tuition and room/board).
West Virginia Wesleyan College.
Westfield State University. ...
Marist College. ...
Manhattanville College. ...
Muskingum University. ...
King's College. ...
Franklin Pierce University. ...
American University. Washington, DC. ...

How do I succeed in college with ADHD?
To help students with ADHD successfully move from high school to college, experts recommend that parents use the following strategies before heading off to campus:
Plan Ahead. ...
Find a Point Person. ...
Encourage Self-Advocacy. ...
Mix It Up in the Classroom. ...
Stay Involved. ...
Taking a Break.

Can people with ADHD go to college?
The transition from high school to college is tough for most students. But for those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, university life poses a host of academic, medical and personal challenges. Students with A.D.H.D. ... Studies suggest that college students with A.D.H.D.Apr 20, 2009

What percentage of college students have ADHD?
Even though students with ADHD are less likely than their peers to graduate from high school and attend college, it is estimated that approximately 25 % of college students receiving disabilities services are diagnosed with ADHD, and this percentage is on the rise

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May 25, 2019