One of the world’s most heralded investors simply keeps calm and carries on.
If you ask someone who the “world’s greatest investor” is, the answer more often than not may be “Warren Buffett.” That honor has never formally been awarded to him, and many other names might be in the running for that hypothetical title, but one thing is certain: the “Oracle of Omaha” is greatly admired in investing circles.
Warren Buffett is often a voice of
reason in volatile times. Through the
years, the Berkshire Hathaway CEO has dispensed many nuggets of investing
wisdom. Like Ben Franklin’s aphorisms in Poor
Richard’s Almanac, they are grounded in common sense and memorable. Here
are some particularly good ones, culled from recent articles posted at
Bloomberg, TheStreet, and Zacks Investment Research:
"The most important quality for an
investor is temperament, not intellect. You need a temperament that neither
derives great pleasure from being with the crowd or against the crowd."1
“Games are won by players who focus on
the playing field -- not by those whose eyes are glued to the scoreboard. If
you can enjoy Saturdays and Sundays without looking at stock prices, give it a
try on weekdays.”2
“If you aren’t thinking about owning a
stock for 10 years, don’t even think about owning it for 10 minutes.”1
"The key to investing is not
assessing how much an industry is going to affect society, or how much it will
grow, but rather determining the competitive advantage of any given company
and, above all, the durability of that advantage."1
“Price is what you pay. Value is what
you get.”1
“The cemetery for seers has a huge
section set aside for macro forecasters.”2
“A business with
terrific economics can be a bad investment if it is bought at too high a
price.”3
“Risk comes from not knowing what you're
doing.”1
Buffett’s clarity and candor stand out
in a financial world marked by jargon.
Some of the quotes above are from his annual letters to Berkshire Hathaway
shareholders, and show his genius for distilling investment lessons into plain
English.
A classic value investor (if not a strict one), Buffett is also a great
optimist. He has never stopped being bullish on America. “America is great now.
It’s never been better,” Buffett told the audience at Fortune Magazine’s 2015 Most Powerful Women summit. “The stock
market does wonderfully over time because American business does wonderfully
over time.” He remains bullish on China, as well; he thinks Chinese stock
benchmarks will sustain their momentum at least through 2017 because businesses
and consumers in China have “found a way to unlock their potential.”4,5
Buffett’s blend of optimism and pragmatism
have helped make him the world’s third-richest person, and the average investor
might do very well to keep some of his maxims in mind, day after day.5
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does not
necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This
information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note
- investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future
results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other
professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage
the services of a competent professional. This information should not be construed
as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of
avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither a solicitation nor
recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or
service, and should not be relied upon as such. All indices are unmanaged and
are not illustrative of any particular investment.
04272016-WR-1625
Citations.
1 - zacks.com/stock/news/181853/15-memorable-investing-quotes-from-warren-buffett
[7/15/15]
2 - bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-24/here-s-what-buffett-wouldn-t-do-and-maybe-you-shouldn-t-either
[2/24/16]
3 - thestreet.com/story/13494470/1/3-new-warren-buffett-quotes-you-can-t-live-without.html
[3/20/16]
4 - fortune.com/2015/10/16/why-the-most-powerful-women-and-warren-buffett-are-bullish-on-the-economy/
[10/16/15]
5 - globaltimes.cn/content/919951.shtml [5/4/15]