Inside the Investments of Warren Buffett: Twenty Cases (Columbia Business School Publishing)

A gift to Buffett followers who have long sought a pattern to the investor's success, __Inside the Investments of Warren Buffett__ presents the most detailed analysis to date of Buffet's long-term investment portfolio. Lu pinpoints what is unique about Buffett's timing, instinct, use of outside knowledge, and postinvestment actions, and he identifies what could work for all investors with companies big and small, global and domestic. Since the 1950s, Warren Buffett and his partners have backed some of the twentieth century's most profitable, trendsetting companies. But how did they know they were making the right investments? What did Buffet and his partners look for in an up-and-coming company, and how can others replicate their approach? A gift to Buffett followers who have long sought a pattern to the investor's success, __Inside the Investments of Warren Buffett__ presents the most detailed analysis to date of Buffet's long-term investment portfolio. Yefei Lu, an experienced investor, starts with Buffett's interest in the Sanborn Map Company in 1958 and tracks nineteen more of his major investments in companies like See's Candies, the __Washington Post__, GEICO, Coca-Cola, US Air, Wells Fargo, and IBM. Accessing partnership letters, company documents, annual reports, third-party references, and other original sources, Lu pinpoints what is unique about Buffett's timing, instinct, use of outside knowledge, and postinvestment actions, and he identifies what could work well for all investors in companies big and small, domestic and global. His substantial chronology accounts for broader world events and fluctuations in the U.S. stock market, suggesting Buffett's most important trait may be the breadth of his expertise. "Since the 1950s, Warren Buffett and his partners have backed some of the twentieth century's most profitable, trend-setting companies, but how did they know they were making the right investments? Did Buffett take the lead on every decision, or was the key to act cooperatively? What did Buffet and his partners look for in an up-and-coming company, and is it possible for others to copy their approach? A gift to Buffett followers who have long sought a pattern to the investor's success, Inside the Investments of Warren Buffett presents the most detailed analysis to date of Buffet's long-term investment portfolio. Yefei Lu, a private investor, starts with Buffett's interest in the Sanborn Map Company in 1960 and tracks nineteen more of his major investments in companies such as See's Candies, the Washington Post, GEICO, Coca-Cola, US Air, Wells Fargo, and IBM. With rare access to partnership letters, company documents, annual reports, third-party references, and other original sources, Lu pinpoints what is unique about Buffett's timing, instinct, use of outside knowledge, and postinvestment actions, and he identifies what could work for all investors with companies big and small, global and domestic. His substantial chronology accounts for broader world events and fluctuations in the U.S. stock market, suggesting Buffett's most important trait may be his open and alert worldview."--Provided by publisher Table of Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: The Partnership Years (1957-1968) 1. 1958: Sanborn Map Company 2. 1961: Dempster Mill Manufacturing Company 3. 1964: Texas National Petroleum Company 4. 1964: American Express 5. 1965: Berkshire Hathaway Part II: The Middle Years (1968-1990) 6. 1967: National Indemnity 7. 1972: See’s Candies 8. 1973: The Washington Post 9. 1976: GEICO 10. 1977: The Buffalo Evening News 11. 1983: Nebraska Furniture Mart 12. 1985: Capital Cities/ABC 13. 1987: Salomon Inc.—Preferred Stock Investments 14. 1988: Coca-Cola Part III: The Late Years (1990-2011) 15. 1989: US Air Group 16. 1990: Wells Fargo 17. 1998: General Re 18. 1999: MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company 19. 2007-2009: Burlington Northern 20. 2011: IBM Part IV: Lessons Learned 21. Evolution of Buffett’s Investment Strategy 22. What We Can Learn from Buffett Appendix A Appendix B Notes Selected Bibliography Index