LC

I bought at these levels a few months ago, debating whether to do so again. My thought is that any big capital investment doesn't go perfectly so I'm not expecting that, even if management does seem confident. Whether it takes one quarter or three to fix is the question in my mind.

A friend of mine is in Africa recruiting for MS. There are talented engineers everywhere and they work cheaper than US counterparts.

Friends, family, music, laughter, stories, technology, and the good of humanity! Happy times and Happy Thanksgiving to every one tomorrow!

For consumer-esque products (i.e. easily understandable) I call retailers/distributors and simply pretend I'm a prospective customer and see what say. Message boards about a particular company or industry that are not investment related are good as well, but as with almost everything online needs to be taken with initial skepticism. I like to see if I can find videos of the CEO as well. Just to get a vibe with his personality. Industry reports are sometimes useful, I think it depends on the industry. Reports on high-tech stuff I haven't really found useful (apparently everything is "disruptive" and "game changing"), same with some of the medical stuff I've tried to read. Although I am clueless in the medical field so maybe it's me. If I think of some others I'll post as well.

about 15% at the moment but I wish I was fully invested...it's a function of having no good ideas

This makes no sense, and is not at all how Buffett or Munger invests. I think it does make sense, why do you disagree? Also it is in fact how Munger invests given he has a portion fo his wealth being managed by Li Lu.

There is buy or there is sell, there is no hold -Yoda (or Li Lu?) Following this advice, if you aren't willing to buy at today's prices, you should sell.

I know a few guys who have worked as CAs for Indian banks, they confirm corruption is quite rampant. I've always had a policy of blindly avoiding anything with perceived corruption but I realize that some forms of "corruption" are the cultural way business gets done. And, ultimately does not fleece shareholders. I was wondering the boards thoughts on the issue and how it relates to JK bank.

Apologies if this has been posted, just saw it and thought the board would enjoy: http://www.fpafunds.com/docs/special-commentaries/2014-10-cfa-society-of-reno-speech.pdf?sfvrsn=2 My favorite part: "The stock market has been a fabulous place to be, particularly the past two years. However, approximately 60% of the market’s total return for this period has been a function of PE expansion. Profit margins have only improved slightly while top line revenue growth for the S&P500 has averaged between 2.5% and 3%. In contrast, earnings’ per share growth, benefitting from aggressive corporate share buybacks, has been above 5%. I warn you that share buy backs should be viewed skeptically since corporations have a long history of implementing them at stock market peaks while they are then terminated at troughs. "

awesome, thanks for posting! i'd love to look thru the raw data if you dont mind posting.

Occasionally!? Here I am watching a movie on TV, while typing this on my laptop, and periodically checking my iphone for text messages. I need to get out more ;D

Yes, snowball, don't feel unloved! I actually called a few distributors about Xpel and would have purchased some if my pesky broker wasn't miserable at everything. One day I will move over to IB, one day...

what are other constraints about reviewing 13-F's? any good articles on this? short positions are not disclosed, so the "long" position may be part of some long/short or other strategy. also sometimes the manager is given permission by the SEC to not disclose positions. so perhaps a fund manager is selling everything which, on the surface, may imply they believe stocks or the market is overrated. but it may be that they are reallocating funds to a new idea not being reported.

If by WSB you are referring to his license plate which says GMWSB it is a reference to his second biggest position - GM's B warrants. Judging from a review of his last 8 13Fs, and his reference to "stock tips", it looks like Fiat could be a new position for Dalal Street since the September 30, 2014 holding date. I think Mohnish has held Fiat for a while now, probably about a year if my memory serves. Although it has been undisclosed to date, which should change by next Q's 13-Fs. For LC, karthikpm, or others on the forum. In the spirit of learning consistent with this forum, how would you guys know that Mohnish held Fiat for so long if he wasn't filing a 13-F on it, and why wouldn't he have to file on it? I am a newbie and obviously not going to his annual meeting nor have I seen any of his "ads". I believe it was at his annual meeting last year (which I didn't attend but fellow boardmembers posted pictures here) where he was photographed in front of a Fiat/Maserati/Ferrari (I forget which brand) with something of a thumbs-up/smile. It was soon after the Fiat thread was started here, and he had given talks around the same time which were on Youtube where he referenced this board as a place to generate/discuss ideas. So nobody knew for sure but it wasn't a big leap to say he owned Fiat. Then when the re-listing to NYSE occured, Fiat released a shareholder list which had Pabrai's funds as owning around 10m shares. So it was confirmed then to an outsider like myself.

Never thought of that, thanks west!

If by WSB you are referring to his license plate which says GMWSB it is a reference to his second biggest position - GM's B warrants. Judging from a review of his last 8 13Fs, and his reference to "stock tips", it looks like Fiat could be a new position for Dalal Street since the September 30, 2014 holding date. I think Mohnish has held Fiat for a while now, probably about a year if my memory serves. Although it has been undisclosed to date, which should change by next Q's 13-Fs.

Yes I agree. I just wish Ackman didn't parade around trying to acquire these guys, because his actions will cloud the valid criticism that Allergan's management took actions which essentially spat in the face of their shareholders.

My impression is that the people trading CFDs in the UK are like retail investors trading Forex here in the States. Ultimately a losing game for the customer, although profitable for the broker. What do you think has driven the large growth in business? Is it that these guys are the low-cost operator, or has the industry in general been booming for some reason? The low-cost model is obviously powerful, my concerns are that the industry they are in always seemed sketchy to me, but I would love to be proven wrong by a more knowledgeable poster.

Fantastic! I look forward to it.

I think he's saying if volume demand falls, Ferrari may be able to (at least moreso vs. their competitors) raise prices to compensate.

I've read that Wsj article RE USPS. It makes sense for both parties but things can change, especially when congress is involved. I think Walmart is more of a threat than google. Google has little to no retail experience. Maybe in digital goods they can compete.

JAllen, just to add to your list, and I think this related to your points on sustained low sales growth/op margins: -Collusion amongst Fedex/USPS/UPS/etc. to raise prices on Amazon. -Expansion/re-adjustment from Wal-Mart to match Amazon's footprint, product offering and shipping capability. -Failure to grow their addressable market. In other words, every potential customer is buying from Amazon at the maximum amount they would order from an online retailer.

You mean to a purchaser who does use the pricing power? Because if never used, it has no value... Possibly, the way I am thinking about it, if there are two companies selling the same product, one with zero pricing power and one with unused pricing power, would I pay the exact same amount to acquire them? Untapped pricing power, even if not used now, can be a valuable lever if in 5 years the market looks completely different. What if competitors totally drop off and Ferrari is the only game in town? Or if they decide to sell "Ferrari auto parts", which could command a premium. I don't know what the future will hold for them, but the fact that they have untapped pricing power today makes them more valuable than a company without.

Even if not enacted, untapped pricing power has value.

How long until the announcement that Berkshire has hired 3G to comb over Duracell?