Monday, December 22, 2008
^V^ $$$ HAPPY NEW YEAR $$$ ^V^
I hv bot in TNB @ 5.90 just now 4 short term trade, it is almost at its bottom (Year low 5.85 ), u can see we r heading to year end window dressing , i am quite sure TNB would be one of them , EPF has been buying aggressively since last month, 5% to 10% gain from it shouldnt be any problem in short term. ( be prepared to hold if mkt goes against u )
I would like to share with u my idol's thought as below :-
What does it take to become a successful investor? Brilliance or Smartness?
Neither, Success in investing doesn't correlate with I.Q. Once you have ordinary intelligence, what you need is the temperament to control the urges that gets other people into trouble in investing.
When do you deicide to invest in a firm?
The best thing that happens to us is when a great company gets into temporary trouble. We want to buy them when they're on the operating table. (Mr. Buffett bought Coke when it had its biggest fiasco after launching New Coke; he bought American Express when it went through a loss making phase in the early 60's)
What do you look for in people when they come to sell their firms to you?
I don't look for the usual credentials such as an MBA, a pedigree (Harvard, Wharton), or cash reserves or market cap of their firm. What I look for is just a passion in their eyes; I think that's the key. A person who is hungry will always do well. I prefer it when people evenafter selling stay on and work for the firm; they are people who can't wait to get off their bed to get to work. Passion is everything; there is no replacement for innate interest.
Mr. Buffett, you told us that Berkshire Hathaway has $ 45 Billion in cash. Why aren't you investing?
Up until a few years back I had more ideas than money. Now I have more money than ideas.
When do you plan to retire?
I love my job; I love it so much that I tap dance to work. Mrs. B, the founder of Nebraska Furniture Mark worked until she was 104, she died within 6 months of her retirement, that's a lesson to all my managers, don't retire! I personally am going to work 6-7 years after I die, probably that's what they mean when they say- "Thinking out of the Box"!!
Why do stock market crashes happen?
Because of human nature for greed and insecurity. The 1970s were unbelievable. The world wasn't going to end, but businesses were being given away. Human nature has not changed. People will always behave in a manic-depressive way over time. They will offer great values to you."
What are the things that are taught wrong in Business school and the corporate world?
I like such open ended questions, I think Business schools should refrain from teaching their wards about profit making and profit making alone, it gives a sense of 1 dimensional outlook to the young students that loss is a curse. In reality, in the corporate world, failure and loss making are inevitable. The capital market without loss is like Christianity without hell. I think they should teach the student on how to buy a business, how to value a business? Not just on how to determine the price of a business. Because price is what you pay, value is what you get.
Do you still hate Technology stocks?
With Coke I can come up with a very rational figure for the cash it will generate in the future. But with the top 10 Internet companies, how much cash will they produce over the next 25 years? If you say you don't know, then you don't know what it is worth and you arespeculating, not investing. All I know is that I don't know, and if I don't know, I don't invest."
How to think about Investing?
The first investment primer was written by Aesop in 600 B.C. He said, 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.' Aesop forgot to saywhen you get the two in the bush and what interest rates are; investing is simply figuring out your cash outlay (the bird in the hand) and comparing it to how many birds are in the bush and when you get them."
How do you feel after donating $ 40 Billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation? You are a hero to us!
I feel nothing. I haven't sacrificed anything in life. I have had a good life. I donated after I turned 75. I think I admire those people who sacrifice their time, share their food and home, as the people to be emulated, not me. Besides, what is money before a man's life?
What do you think are the pitfalls in donation?
I have never donated a dime to churches or other such organizations; I need to believe in something before I end up doing that. I have beenobserving the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation for years now and I am confident they will do a fantastic job of making use of the money. I am a big believer in Outsourcing, others believed in me as an Investor and gave their hard earned money to invest. I believe in Bill Gates, he is a better donor than me.
Why do you work from Omaha and not Wall Street , New York ?
Wall Street is the only place where people alight from Rolls Royce to get advised by people who use the Public transportation system.
You seem to be so well read, tell us how it all started.
My father was a stock broker, so we had all these financial books in our library. He introduced me to those classics and I got into them. Iam lucky that my father was not a fan of Playboy! Reading is the best habit you can get. Well, you can learn from teachers too, and have mentors but there are so many constraints attached- they will talk fast, talk slow, they might talk like a pro or they might be terrible communicators. Books are a different animal altogether, I love reading! The beauty about reading and learning is that the more you learn the more you want to learn.
People who join Berkshire Hathaway seldom leave. How do you get along well with all your executives?
I try to get quality people. I always say - Hire someone in your organization who is better than you are. If you do that, you build a company of giants. If you get people worse than yourself, you build a company of dwarfs. And do not try to do everything yourself. Delegate the jobs and look out of the window. The results will come. That's how you build institutions. It happens only when you empower others, believe in others. Iam an investor, Iam very secured at that, I have no clue how to make Coca-Cola or how to dole out credit cards (Mr. Buffett owns 8% of Coca-Cola and 13 % of American Express). I understand the wisdom of the aphorism that you cannot please all the people all the time. Of Course, you will always find qualities that you don't like in people around you, but if you observe carefully the love of the work unites you both. There is no point in being obsessive about a bad quality in a person, whom you otherwise respect.
I am a small time businessman from Dallas , Texas , what do I need to do to hit big time?
Be patient, Achieving your financial goals and dreams will not happen overnight. As much as we would all really love to accomplish our goals in a few years, this is an ongoing process. Defining your financial goals is not a one-time task; you need to keep adding new plans at different stages in your life. We all admire the skills of Olympic ice skaters, pro golfers, and concert pianists. But do we remember that they didn't acquire their skills overnight? They had to practice hours on end for years to achieve their dreams. The key to success is to continue learning throughout your life with a voracious appetite.
I think it is marvelous that you have had a golden run with investing, how did you do that?
My rule is to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. Besides, I call investing the greatest job in the world because you never have to swing. You stand at the plate; the pitcher throws you General Motors at 47! U.S. Steel at 39! And nobody calls a strike on you. There's no penalty except opportunity lost. All day you wait for the pitch you like; then when the fielders are asleep, you step up and hit it. Stay dispassionate and be patient. You're dealing with a lot of silly people in the marketplace; it's like a great big casino and everyone else is boozing. If you can stick with drinking Coke, you should be OK. First the crowd is boozy on optimism and buying every new issue in sight. The next moment it is boozy on pessimism, buying gold bars and predicting another Great Depression, most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can't buy what is popular and do well.
Mr. Buffett you have seen so many crashes and recessions, your take on facing recessions and stock market crashes?
If past history was all there was to the game, the richest people would be librarians. Every scenario is different. But always remember, Tough times do not last. Tough people do.
What is the 1 biggest advice you would impart to a young investor like me?
Think for a moment that you are given a car and told this is the only car you would get for the rest of your life. Then you would make sure that you car is taken care of well, it is oiled and detailed every now and then. You would make sure that it never gets rusted, and you would garage it. Think of yourself as that car. You just get 1 body, 1 mind and 1 soul. Take care of it well. Invest in yourself - that would be my advice..
You personally know many of the Financial executives who are engineers of the current turmoil in the financial world, surprisingly even after record losses, those executives receive astronomical salaries and bonuses and arrogantly declare that they deserve it, why dont you advice them from making such decisions and what's your view on their justification for their pay?
I like sharing my ideas but don't like imposing my ideas on anybody. It doesn't make sense and is a waste of time. If somebody has decided that they know everything that is there to know, nobody can help them. The best way to learn and succeed is to know that we know nothing. There is an entire universe out there and still some of us think we can know everything. In the world of investing a few people after making some money tend to imagine they are invincible and great. This is the worst thing that could happen to any investor, because it surely means that the investor will end up taking unnecessary risks and end up losing everything – arrogance, ego and overconfidence are very lethal. Personally I don't feel too comfortable with too much extravagance, because I always think like an investor. My thought process doesn't see a lot of value in a fancy car or a designer suit. Thinking like an investor always is very important to bring in a sense of discipline and focus. Before reading balance sheets and investing you need to make sure your outlook and mindset is that of an investor. Never let ego, arrogance and over-confidence control you - not just as an investor but also as a human being. You will never have internal peace if you are unable to look at everybody around you with love, compassion and understanding. Irrespective of who the person is, he or she can teach you something you don't know. I have learnt so much from people all around me and I wouldn't have been able to learn all these wonderful things if I had not spoken to them with a smile. To quote Sir Isaac Newton- If I have seen farther than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.
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47 comments:
sifu sam i still holding my tenaga@6.95. :-( is time do average buy more and keep under my pillow.
Hi Sifu Sam, I 'm still holding some shares in KNM, average prices is RM 0.625. Is it advisable to buy some at this current level, RM 0.40? I plan to sell it b4 CNY if there is some profit. Pls Advise.
Hi ML, u can buy in some @ 0.40+- for swing trade , cabut once u make 10% from it .
d problem with knm is bcos of FMR bulk selling ( n oso it high gearing ) , in d other hand ..there is some good sign oso, EPF n Small cap fund r buying aggresively ! it is actually a good deal @ 0.40 for long term play.
2 Silvester, u didnt cabut yr tnb when it was hanging around 8.50 last August ? y ??
2 randy , seng make fun on u ah ? macam ini lu pun tak tau jawab ah ? ha ha..let me teach u how to answer seng lah...
u should ask seng :-
Seng what happen to yr GS @ 87, citigroup @ 8.50 N proton @ 2.00 ? seng u dont hv to answer if u dont want too..if i were u , i would try to use this as a lesson, esp on how i would trade US stock differently...
ha ha ..see randy ?
((((((((
Seng: Ok, you're in a not so good position right now, but if I were you, I would try to use this as a lesson, especially on how I would trade differently ...
23 Dec 08, 10:40
23 Dec 08, 10:39
Seng: No randy, just curious how that's going. You don't have to answer if you don't want too ... just curious about your entry and exit reasoning ... market's boring at the moment ...
23 Dec 08, 10:38
random: are u making fun of me
23 Dec 08, 10:38
Seng: random, your paper trade MAYBULK at 2.44 ... what's happened to that
))))))))
hi uncle sam ...good morning
wah! very long article but than
i think it is worth reading
good reference for the future.
tks
hello uncle sam ....
wah! long article to read but i
think worth it.
good for future reference
have a good day..uncle!!!
haha~ good one sam.
is randy a samgang's fan too?
if yes, randy. pls reply to seng like what sam said, see how he respond.
and most importantly, pls post back on how seng react to this, i would to see this. kakakaka...
Bro, this article looks familiar to me ... keke ^_^
Now I'm waiting for the SGD = RMxx exchange rate to go down ... now is 2.3x approaching 2.4 is really too high for me. But traditionally it will go down during CNY time. Genting International ... wait for me.
SAM, wow - good article,
Now majority in cash after sold all xxxxx, + holding in knm and resorts, thinking average down when price attractive ( ~390).
A very MERRY X'MAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR to all readers and investors of SAM's Blog.
Sifu Sam,
Merry Xmas and Happy New Year to you and your family as well as to all Sam's fans.
Warmest Regards,
Newbie
Merry X'mas And Happy New Year 2009 to all . May good luck and wealth will be with us.
To Sifu Sam and all readers,
I would like to take this opportunity to wish Merry Xmas and Happy New Year to you and your family as well as to all readers.
May next year and next next year and next next next...... next year our good year to make money! :)
Regards,
Eric
Merry Christmas and
Happy New Year greetings
Merry X'mas And Happy New Year 2009 to all!
Happy new year and all the best in 2009.
Good year for SAM. good news for us :)
I like Warren Buffet style of investing. Great diversification, fundamentals and leveraging. With that much of cash at hand, making losses in 1 company can be covered by others in his portfolio. If not he would be out hunting for more gem companies as he still has USD45billion in his coffer.
Sam,how do u track the shareholders appetite info? eg. KNM, u told us that EPF and small cap fund are start to buy-in..but,i cant find the info abt this!Please advice.
Sifu, ur advice on ytlpwrWB is to sell off on strength,end of the year?
Merry X'mas...and a Happy New Year!
thanks you sifu sam
1Q of this year i lose around -40%to -50%, really burn...
after i reading ur blog I learn a lot from you and sam fans. thanks
I cut all my share and then follow ur call, bought some ytlpowrwb and tenaga, help me to gain alot and take back my lose money,
right now profit & loss become +5% end of 2008. haha.
thanks sifu sam and samgang
happy new year 2009
learned a lot from your article, Thanks SAM and wish you and all SAM'gang Happy New Year 2009!!
Happie New Year to Uncle Sam and all his fans!!!!! :-D
Tough year ahead in 2009..hang on tight everyone!!!! Once again, HappiE NeW YeAR to all!!!!
Incldg Seng...lol
Congrats again on Warren Buffet style Tenaga.
Quite a good year for me...
follow Uncle Sam call...entered YTLPower-WB at 0.490...so far make around 33%...lol...but still holding onto it with a lose exit point when it drops below 10% of it's highest value achieved so far...
Aniway, sifu Sam really power...haha...but hor, i still think sifu Sam shouldnt alwiz tembak Seng so much...can feel u alwiz very tension & pek chek...
Aniway,thanks alot & may the year of the Ox bring prosperity to all!!!!
sam,
tenaga is 6.30 now. how do u know tenaga will go up today? you have insider news? can i be ur follower? haha.
hi all... woowww just know that tnb n ytlpowwb r flying today..ha ha... see ? if u use d right method (FA), u still can make $$$$ from bear mkt ! i will definitely take profit 2molo...
Hi felix , u hv any tnb in hand ?
2 chang , me tension ? ha ha of course not..fyi... making fun on seng's back hand TA is really fun, i enjoyed very much ^V^
fyi, his poor TA is not his only weakness ^V^
see yah ^V^
hello loke..insider news ? ha ha of course not ! it is solely FA method... opps need to go 4 swimming now b4 pool close ...
see u guys next year ^V^
hi sam,
I want to your expert opinion on KNM. Company growing well with 2.3bil book order and price drop so much.
Hi Sam
Been trading TNB since u first highlighted it. It's been in the trading range between 5.90 & 6.15.
sold one lot of TNB @ 6.35, balance 1 lot left.
KNM 's gearing is too high + FMR is still selling at this moment, crude oil @35 should be d bottom, once fmr finish their selling, that's d rock time 4 KNM.
We sld monitor knm's cash flow closely, current level of gearing has already crossed its red line.
$ifu, happy new year n hope 2009 would b the year of BULL afterall it's 牛年 ma.
What's ur strategy in stock market '09? Sell b4 28 Feb n sailang in 3rd quarter?
Hi Sam , happy new year to you and your family.Cheers
thanks c k n all, happy new year ^V^
2 118, regarding 2009 stratergy, I will post it up later.
4 those who still holding ytlpwwb, I hv sold 10 lots of ytlpowerwb @0.66... d rest i will sell along d rise, pls take note ^V^
4 tnb, i hv sold all @ avg 6.325 liaooo.... yummmy..... check my entry of tnb , 8% return in less than 5 working days, not bad yah ? right seng n d gang ? ha ha....
done another 5 lots of ytlpwwb @0.67....^V^
Sam & Gang
Happy New Year and Properous 2009
tanhin
bingo ! another 5 lots of ytlpwrwb sold @ 0.67 @ 12.18pm...
balance 48 lots left
Another 15 lots sold @0.67 ! balance left behind 15 lots ^V^
33% return from ytlpowerwb $$$$$$, who said we cant make $$$$$ from bear mkt ? who said ? seng said that ? or Ah Cow said that ? ha ha
K...gtg now..happy new year ^V^
Wow, Sam. This is the first time i read about ur blog and it's great. I wish i had read that earlier. Can you add me to ur email list? Happy New Year!
my email: tkchieh@yahoo.com
2 soon huat n those who asked me y i know fmr is throwing n epf + small cap fund r buying knm..
I hv posted it up just now, hv a look bros.....
Uncle Sam,
Good to see you making money.. I really happy for u even i'm not as smart as u.. but i'm proud to be your friend.. :)
Thanks for take care of me as your fren all the while..
Have a good year 2009 ahead.
Happy New Year 2009 to all in Sam blog.
Sam, WISH YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009 and Making More Money in 2009!!!
HI SAM,
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009,
so happy to see you making money.
keep on blogging to guide us in this coming new year.
Sifu sam and all in this blog,
Happy new year and fatt fatt fatt
in Niu year!!!!!
Thanks Sam.
Guys, Happy New Year...
Yea...make more $$...Haha!
Hi Uncle Sam, how about Resort? izzit can buy in for swing trade or long term?
Happy New Year 2009! Huat..huat...huat...
Wish Uncle Sam and Gang's have a wonderful and prosperous New Year !!
Cheers..!
hi sam,
thanks for the screenshot. Happi New Year to you too.
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