RWH033: Lessons From Buffett & Berkshire w/ Chris Bloomstran
We Study Billionaires - The Investor’s Podcast Network
Stig Brodersen
4.6 • 3.6K Ratings
🗓️ 17 September 2023
⏱️ 78 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode, William Green speaks with Chris Bloomstran, President & Chief Investment Officer of Semper Augustus. This conversation has been divided into two episodes. Here, in Part 2, Chris discusses what we can learn from studying Berkshire Hathaway & Warren Buffett; weighs the risks of Berkshire’s huge Apple stake; discusses Berkshire’s valuation; & explains why the stock should beat the S&P 500. He also talks about avoiding charlatans and living with integrity.
IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:
00:00 - Intro
02:38 - Why Chris Bloomstran says it’s so valuable to study Berkshire Hathaway.
05:04 - How Warren Buffett thinks about intelligent asset allocation.
06:59 - How share buybacks are mishandled by many companies.
11:30 - How he values Berkshire, & why it should outperform the S&P 500.
20:40 - Why most investors shouldn’t pick stocks for themselves.
29:16 - How Chris manages his time.
40:28 - How he’s risen above a painfully difficult childhood.
43:42 - Why the key to investing success is a fierce work ethic.
44:57 - What his football coaches taught him about integrity & kindness.
54:10 - How Chris uses social media to criticize what he calls “charlatan promotion.”
58:41 - What he thinks of Berkshire’s huge stake in Apple.
1:08:15 - What a legendary golfer taught him about how to live.
Disclaimer: Slight discrepancies in the timestamps may occur due to podcast platform differences.
BOOKS AND RESOURCES
- Chris Bloomstran’s firm Semper Augustus Investments Group
- Chris Bloomstran’s 2022 Letter to Clients: “Crazy Train”
- William Green’s book, “Richer, Wiser, Happier” – read the reviews of this book
- Listen to Stig Brodersen’s April 2023 interview with Chris Bloomstran, or watch the video.
- Follow Chris Bloomstran on X (AKA Twitter)
- Follow William Green on X (AKA Twitter)
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Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi there, this is part two of my conversation with Chris Bloomstrand, a terrific investor |
| 0:08.5 | who's the president and chief investment officer of Semperor, Gustus Investment Group. |
| 0:14.3 | Chris has an excellent long-term record over the last three decades, but he's probably |
| 0:18.7 | best known as one of the world's leading experts on Berkshire Hathaway. |
| 0:23.1 | Chris's annual letter to clients has developed a cult following, not least because it includes |
| 0:28.5 | an amazingly detailed analysis of Berkshire. |
| 0:32.1 | In his most recent letter, he devoted 59 pages by my count to analyzing Berkshire's many |
| 0:39.1 | different businesses and valuing the company in four different ways. |
| 0:44.2 | That attention to detail gives you a sense of how fiercely driven, obsessive and intense |
| 0:50.7 | Chris's when it comes to analyzing stocks. |
| 0:54.3 | In this part of our conversation, we talk in some depth about why investors and CEOs |
| 0:59.8 | should study Berkshire Hathaway and what they can learn from Warren Buffett about things |
| 1:04.1 | like how to allocate capital more intelligently and how to think rationally about share |
| 1:09.6 | buybacks and also how to treat shareholders more nobly and honorably and fairly as partners. |
| 1:18.2 | We also discuss the merits and risks of Buffett's enormous investment in Apple. |
| 1:23.9 | And Chris explains why he expects Berkshire to outperform the S&P 500 over the next decade. |
| 1:30.6 | Along the way, we also chat about why most investors shouldn't pick individual stocks |
| 1:35.7 | for themselves and why they should be extremely careful of the casino side of Wall Street, |
| 1:42.0 | which is full of smooth talking promoters who are good at spinning stories and making |
| 1:47.4 | themselves extremely rich, but are not necessarily looking out for the best interests of unsuspecting |
| 1:53.3 | retail investors. |
| 1:54.3 | As you'll hear in this very candid conversation, Chris has some intensely personal reasons |
... |
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