(Boursier.com) -- Les actionnaires de
Berkshire Hathaway avaient rendez-vous ce week-end à Omaha (Nebraska) pour l'assemblée générale annuelle de la société d'investissement de Warren Buffett. Cette "grand-messe", que le célèbre milliardaire aime qualifier de "Woodstock des capitalistes", a attiré cette année environ 40.000 personnes ! Cette année, les actionnaires du groupe se sont autant souciés du bulletin de santé de Warren Buffett que des performances financières de Berkshire Hathaway, trois semaines après la révélation par le "sage d'Omaha" qu'il souffrait d'un cancer de la prostate...
Le milliardaire s'est montré très serein, qualifiant ce diagnostic d'"événement réellement mineur", ajoutant qu'il se sentait "en pleine forme" et qu'il avait "quatre médecins, dont plusieurs sont actionnaires de Berkshire Hathaway" ! Au sujet de son éventuelle succession, Warren Buffett, 81 ans, a une nouvelle fois écarté l'idée de prendre sa retraite, tout en demandant aux actionnaires de ne pas s'inquiéter : "Je sais que celui que nous avons en tête a la même culture et le même sens des ressources humaines que moi", a-t-il assuré. Les principaux candidats internes évoqués pour la reprise des fonctions de M. Buffett sont Ajit Jain, 60 ans, patron de la branche de réassurance, Matthew Rose, 53 ans, à la tête de la compagnie de fret ferroviaire Burlington Northern, et Greg Abel, 49 ans, responsable de la branche d'énergie MidAmerican.
Au passage, Warren Buffet a annoncé que le résultat net de Berkshire Hathaway avait doublé au 1er trimestre pour s'établir à 3,25 Mds$, grâce notamment à une forte réduction des pertes de la branche assurance, liée à un moins grand nombre de catastrophes naturelles.
L'investisseur a aussi évoqué avoir envisagé récemment le plus gros investissement de sa carrière, à plus de 20 Milliards de Dollars, mais a ajouté avoir renoncé en raison d'un prix de vente jugé trop élevé... Il n'a pas révélé le nom de cette cible potentielle, ajoutant que le groupe envisageait d'investir jusqu'à 30 Mds$ dans le courant de la prochaine année.
Par ailleurs, Warren Buffett ne compte pas acheter de titres Facebook à l'occasion de l'introduction en Bourse du réseau social en ligne, prévue pour les prochains jours, mais il a néanmoins affirmé "qu'il surveillera de près la société". Toujours dans le secteur technologique, où il s'est aventuré pour la première fois récemment avec
IBM, il a aussi exclu d'acheter des titres
Google ou
Apple. Même s'il juge ces sociétés "extraordinaires", le milliardaire pense que "les risques de se tromper gravement avec IBM sont probablement moins élevés, au moins de notre point de vue, que les risques liés à Google et Apple !".
May 6, 2012
Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger don't much care what you think -- and that's why we love them.
Berkshire Hathaway's (
NYSE: BRK-A ) (
NYSE: BRK-B ) chairman and vice-chairman are straight shooters who, once a year, captivate 30,000-plus investors at their annual meeting's marathon question-and-answer sessions. This year's performance was a gem -- all the more impressive with the
high-stakes questions surrounding Buffett's health and a post-Buffett succession strategy.
On how Warren feels: Several questions went by before Andrew Ross Sorkin muscled up and asked the question on everyone's mind: "How are you feeling?"
"I feel great," Buffett said. "I love what I do. I work with people I love." And it showed. He was full steam ahead the entire day and demonstrated the wit and passion that made him famous. Anyone walking in with doubts about how Buffett feels walked out relieved that Berkshire's chairman is going strong.
On succession: Buffett didn't budge on not showing his cards when it comes to his successors. He did give glimpses of a tell, though, when he piled on the praise for lieutenant and close confidant Ajit Jain, who was definitely the smart-money pick as
the next CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. But today's hammering home of Ajit's value is as clear a signal as we'll get from the close-to-the-vest Buffett.
On Buffett's edge: Buffett was prodded on whether a post-Buffett Berkshire could keep landing sweetheart deals such as the
Bank of America (
NYSE: BAC )
investment without the Buffett brand. While the perception of a Midas touch helps, Buffett pointed out, "These [sweetheart] deals were just peanuts compared to the value created by buying businesses like Geico and BNSF." He also pointed out that part of the reason Berkshire lands such deals is its fortress-like balance sheet, which should be a staple of Berkshire's culture long after he's moved on.
On tech stocks: Buffett and Munger were asked about whether they would invest in
Google(
Nasdaq: GOOG ) or
Apple (
Nasdaq: AAPL ) . Not surprisingly, they're passing. Both Buffett and Munger think Google is an outstanding business, but they don't believe they have any ability to project where the businesses are headed over the years. Unlike most high-minded value investors responding to tech stocks -- including me -- there was no smugness. They replied with a tone that would fit a question on whether they could predict next Friday's temperature.
On buying well and knowing limits: Buffett: "If you buy businesses for less than they are worth, you're going to make money. If you know which businesses you can and cannot value, you're going to make money."
On mindless repurchase programs: Munger: "Some people buy back their stock regardless of price. That's not our system."
On Berkshire's intrinsic value: A hot topic. Buffett echoed comments from his
shareholder letter -- "Fair value is significantly above 110% of book value." With Berkshire's stock selling for about 115% of book value, suffice it to say that he thinks the stock is cheap today. Buffett even went so far to say, "If I could buy a whole lot of Berkshire stock at a slightly higher price, I'd probably do it."
On beauty: Buffett: "The beauty of stocks is they do sell at silly prices sometimes. That's how Charlie and I got rich."
On a Berkshire dividend: Buffett: "I do not think a dividend would be a plus in terms of getting the share price up to [fair] value -- in fact, it might be quite the opposite."
No joke. Buffett has an unmatched track record of capital allocation. If there's a question of who should reinvest that marginal dollar of capital -- individual Berkshire shareholders or Buffett himself -- I think the latter wins the benefit of the doubt. Berkshire shouldn't pay a dividend until its resident master investors have retired.
On tapeworms: Buffett: "Medical costs are the tapeworm of American industry."
On can-kicking: Munger: "Everyone wants fiscal virtue -- but not quite yet."
On gold: Buffett and Munger are pretty outspoken critics of
investing in gold. They prefer productive assets over hunks of metal. As Buffett said: "When we took over Berkshire, gold was at $20, and Berkshire was at $15. Gold is now at $1,600 and Berkshire is $120,000." Burn.
On oil and gas: Buffett: "If you told Charlie and me that you'd have a 50:1 ratio of oil to natural gas, I think we'd have asked you what you were drinking."
On declines: An audience member asked how to value declining businesses. Munger: "They're not worth nearly as much."
On sympathizing for Warren's health: Munger: "I resent all this sympathy and attention Warren is getting."
On keeping up: Munger: "I probably have more prostate cancer."
On disagreement: Buffett was challenged by an audience member on whether his political engagement is hurting Berkshire's stock. The audience member cited his 84-year-old father who refused to invest in Berkshire because of Buffett's stance on taxes.
"It's fine if people disagree with us," Buffett says. "It sounds to me that if that an 84-year-old man is making a decision on his investment based upon his politics, he belongs on Fox."
On causing offense: Buffett: "Anyone we haven't offended?"
Buffett says Berkshire will top its biggest deal
Reuters
Warren Buffett sings with University of Nebraska cheerleaders during the Berkshire Hathaway Annual shareholders meeting in Omaha Saturday.
Warren Buffett, who built Berkshire Hathaway Inc. into a US$200 billion company through stock picks and acquisitions, said his firm may top its largest deal, the 2010 purchase of railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe.
“Berkshire will continue to grow,” Buffett, 81, said in an interview for Bloomberg Television’s “In the Loop” program with Betty Liu after the firm’s May 5 shareholders meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. “Someday, US$34 billion will not be the limit.”
Record earnings at Berkshire’s largest units have helped build the company’s cash holdings to US$37.8 billion. Buffett told shareholders at the meeting that he recently passed on a deal valued at about US$22 billion after failing to agree on price. The billionaire, who has kept the cash hoard above US$20 billion to guarantee liquidity, said that such a deal would have meant divesting some securities he didn’t want to sell.
Buffett and Berkshire Vice Chairman Charles Munger, 88, took questions for five hours at Omaha’s CenturyLink Center on topics such as succession and U.S. politics, and companies including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. He sketched out some of the roles he envisioned for the next generation of Berkshire leaders, who will oversee a US$120 billion portfolio of stocks and bonds and allocate capital among more than 70 operating units.
Buffett said last month that he was diagnosed with stage 1 prostate cancer and that he would undergo radiation therapy starting in July. He said at the meeting that the diagnosis is a “minor event” and that he feels “terrific.” Some investors said they hope Buffett remains Berkshire’s chairman and chief executive officer for years and continues holding the annual meetings, which draw tens of thousands of people.
Munger’s Resentment
“I resent all this attention and sympathy Warren is getting,” Munger said in response to a question about Buffett’s health. “I probably have more prostate cancer than he does.”
Buffett’s roles will be divided when he’s no longer leading Berkshire. He has said that his son Howard, a company director, would guard the firm’s culture as non-executive chairman, while the board has picked his successor as CEO along with two backups. The firm hasn’t identified the candidates.
Oversight of the investment portfolio will fall to Ted Weschler and Todd Combs, former hedge-fund managers whom Buffett hired in the past two years. Berkshire hit a “home run” with both and may add another money manager to help, Buffett said. Weschler and Combs oversee US$2.75 billion each.
Future Leaders
Risk management will be among the responsibilities of the next CEO, Buffett said. The company’s future leaders are unlikely to have much of a derivatives book except for some positions used in operating subsidiaries, he said. Berkshire has more than US$7 billion in liabilities on contracts it sold in 2006 and 2007 that are tied to global stock markets.
Overseeing what could happen to the company in worst-case scenarios is “a very important ability” that shouldn’t be delegated, Buffett said. “We’re not going to have an arts major in charge of Berkshire.”
The next CEO also will be counted on to make deals. Finding acquisitions big enough to boost earnings power is one of the challenges Berkshire faces, Jay Gelb, an analyst at Barclays Plc, said in a note to clients last month. Gelb was among three analysts invited this year to ask questions of Buffett and Munger alongside shareholders and a panel of journalists.
The Burlington Northern deal was financed with cash and stock and has helped boost net income. The railroad contributed US$701 million to first-quarter profit, up from US$607 million a year earlier, as shipments of consumer goods and industrial products rose, Berkshire said in a May 4 regulatory filing.
‘I Love Acquisitions’
“I wish I could make a big acquisition, because I love acquisitions when we’ve got the money,” Buffett told Bloomberg Television. “If we can make a good deal tomorrow, whether it’s small or big, we’ll make it.”
Buffett told Bloomberg’s Liu that he would let women join the Augusta National Golf Club if he were in charge. The club, which holds golf’s annual Masters Tournament, has been criticized for its male-only policy. The promotion of Virginia “Ginni” Rometty to CEO of International Business Machines Corp., one of the tournament’s chief sponsors, drew attention to the issue. The Georgia club historically invites IBM’s top executive to be a member, including the four previous CEOs.
“I’m not telling the group at Augusta what to do, but if I were running the club I’d have plenty of women,” said Buffett, a member of Augusta. Berkshire is IBM’s biggest shareholder.
Citizens United
Buffett also fielded questions at the meeting about his support for President Barack Obama and his push for higher taxes on the wealthy. He said he wouldn’t donate to super political action committees, the interest groups made possible by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling that removed limits on corporate and union election spending.
“I don’t want to see democracy go in that direction,” Buffett said. Supporters of both Obama and presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney have created super PACs to influence this year’s presidential election.
Some shareholders questioned Buffett about Berkshire stock, which has underperformed the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in six of the last seven quarters. He said he may repurchase shares “on a big scale” if the price falls below 110% of book value, a measure of assets minus liabilities. At that point, Buffett said he would be certain that he was making money for shareholders who held onto their investment. Berkshire’s Class A shares closed May 4 at US$121,950 each, or about 1.14 times book.
Bribery Allegations
Berkshire’s holding in Wal-Mart also drew a question. The New York Times reported last month that executives at the world’s biggest retailer bribed officials to speed expansion in Mexico. The U.S. Justice Department is investigating, people familiar with the matter have said. Berkshire owns 39 million shares, or more than 1%, of the Bentonville, Arkansas- based company.
While Wal-Mart may have botched how it dealt with bribery allegations and will have to divert management time to the investigation, the probe probably won’t have a long-term effect on the company’s financial strength, Buffett said.
“I don’t think the earning power of Wal-Mart five years from now will be materially affected by the outcome of this situation,” he said. “It may result in a significant fine, but I don’t think it changes the fundamental dynamic.”
David Tovar, a Wal-Mart spokesman, declined to comment. The company said in an April 21 statement that it has met voluntarily with the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to discuss the case. The retailer also is enhancing its audit procedures and internal controls.
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