Parsad

+1! And in worst case scenario, you can eat cash...high in fibre. Try passing a gold bar through your colon! :) Cheers!

April 13, 2016 Ben Graham Centre’s 2016 Value Investing Conference The Ben Graham Centre for Value Investing will hold its 2016 Value Investing Conference at The Fairmont Royal York in downtown Toronto. For more details and to register: http://www.bengrahaminvesting.ca/Outreach/2016_Conference.htm

April 13, 2016 Ben Graham Centre’s 2016 Value Investing Conference The Ben Graham Centre for Value Investing will hold its 2016 Value Investing Conference at The Fairmont Royal York in downtown Toronto. For more details and to register: http://www.bengrahaminvesting.ca/Outreach/2016_Conference.htm

One more thing, can some of you guys get off your f**king high horse and stop the back-door posts insinuating that my friendship with Mohnish blinds me to his errors in judgement. He's not a God! He's made mistakes before...anyone remember 2007/2008? He's human like all of us and he will make good and bad investment decisions, no matter how you or he chooses to frame it. It is what it is! He's a very smart guy, who will get most of his decisions right, and some will go bad...simple! I didn't copy his investment in Fiat, GM, et al like so many others on here, who are now crying foul because they jumped into ZINC and lost a bundle! I don't have a god-damn checklist, I don't clone, I don't have the nicest Swiss sidekick that any portfolio manager could want, and I have yet to ride a bike in tights! That's what you actual zealots do and then turn on the guy when he f**ks up! He's my friend...I don't kiss his ass! And why is it that I don't do these things? Because I've always thought independently, just like I've always run this message board independently. Everything I've done, I've done from the grassroots up...the hard way...independent...whether it was Corner of Berkshire & Fairfax, Corner Market Capital or now Premier. No "family money/office" as some of you guys suggest you are starting with, no huge windfall from a benefactor, no notoriety from an ex-employer...from scratch, the hard way, learning every facet of each business along the way, and making sacrifice after sacrifice. Maybe, I'm getting older, maybe I'm fed up with the bull-shit because I don't have to take it any more, but if you don't f**king like how I run the message board, then bugger off! I don't sugar coat for anyone...whether it was Sardar, Mohnish, Prem, Buffett, whoever. I'd be doing a disservice to everyone, including myself, if I did that! Cheers!

Sanjeev, I don't mean to be mean but I see lots of investor letters etc. which are posted on this site so i guess if you want to apply that rule you have enforce that on everything, not only one specific example. Thanks. Hi Sanjeev, I believe you removed the letter. Does that mean there shouldn't have been any "copyrighted" material on this site at all? Why didn't you have deleted prior similar examples from this site and just deleted this one specificslly? I think we should have rules&principles which would be applied all cases, not selective examples based on judgement. Wouldn't you agree? Thanks. I can't review every single post. When readers report a thread or post, then I try and rectify the issue. You guys should not be putting up any copyrighted material on here unless less than 100 words. You are more than welcome to discuss what is written in the letter or even link to it, but not publish copyrighted material. Cheers!

Folks, Do not put up copyrighted material without the author's permission! Any material, including excerpts, published without permission will be removed. Thanks! Sanjeev

Seminar on Value Investing and the Search for Value July 18-22, 2016 Toronto, ON This seminar, taught by Dr. George Athanassakos (Professor of Finance and the Ben Graham Chair in Value Investing at the Ivey Business School, Western University), is geared towards financial professionals and individual investors seeking to enhance their knowledge of value creation, valuation and value investing theory and practice. Mr. Francis Chou, President, Chou Associates Management Inc., will be a guest speaker on July 22. For more information see, http://valueinvestingeducation.com/seminars.htm

Seminar on Value Investing and the Search for Value July 18-22, 2016 Toronto, ON This seminar, taught by Dr. George Athanassakos (Professor of Finance and the Ben Graham Chair in Value Investing at the Ivey Business School, Western University), is geared towards financial professionals and individual investors seeking to enhance their knowledge of value creation, valuation and value investing theory and practice. Mr. Francis Chou, President, Chou Associates Management Inc., will be a guest speaker on July 22. For more information see, http://valueinvestingeducation.com/seminars.htm

Answers: No and he wants to control as much of the company as he can, with the end game being extremely rich and well-known...dissenters be damned. Cheers!

I agree! This has been one of the most embarrassing collapses in judgement I have seen, from someone who had such potential as an investor and business person. When no one says "no" this is what happens. I remember when we first wrote the letter to the board of Steak'n Shake, pleading for them not to change the name of the company to Biglari Holdings, we were the only dissenting voice to have sent a letter or said anything in any concrete manner. The vote passed with well over a 90% vote in favour of the change. We sold half our shares at $380+ the next day. Once the compensation change press release came out, we sold the remaining half at $360+ the following week, after a 2-hour discussion with Phil and Sardar in Omaha on why it was a bad idea and they vehemently disagreed. That was the end of our ownership! Cheers!

I agree! If anyone should have avoided SD, it would have been the guys who expected the commodities blow-up and deflation. But you have several primary managers at Hamblin-Watsa, as well as analysts, who all manage some money. They are allowed to allocate a significant portion as they see fit. SD was probably not a consensus investment, but one allocated by a couple of managers with the capital at their discretion. How many value investors on here have varying views of the same security? Cheers!

Steve Cohen gets barred for 2 years alongside his previous $1.8B fine. He can start managing outside money again in 2 years! Nice job U.S. regulators...you'll just be dealing with this again 8-10 years from now. Cheers! http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/cohen-barred-managing-investor-funds-years-36170207

If oil was above $70 barrel, and it was well above at one point, it would not have been a dog of a stock. Everything is relative to the economic circumstances around it. Lou Simpson owns quite a large chunk of Chesapeake...which is nearly as big as a dog. Doesn't mean Lou Simpson was completely wrong on the thesis, but the environment changed dramatically and the viability of the company changed. You pick ten stocks...as long as you are right on six of them you are golden. Two will fail and two will tread sideways. But you still do perfectly fine over the long-run if you get those six of ten right. Cheers!

Don't know how the Keg's are everywhere, but I go to many in Vancouver and surrounding areas during the year and I've been to the one in downtown Toronto near Fairfax's office. I've never had a bad steak...in fact, I've always had a good to great steak at the Keg...cooked exactly how I like it. The service is always great and you know what you are getting there. I went to BierMarket a couple of years ago...the mussels were fantastic as was the beer. I've never had the burger there. Harvey's competition is DQ, McDonalds, BK, et al...when compared to them, Harvey's burgers are as good or better. They are not Five Guys, nor are they Shake Shack...they aren't meant to be like them. Swiss Chalet is what it is. It was one of the first restaurants to offer healthy fare, but roasted chickens are now available in every grocery store deli. Still, they give you exactly what you kind of expect. The food at the Montana's I go to here is pretty good. Nothing spectacular, but decent low-mid market restaurant fare...not that different than TGIF's, etc. I think East Side Marios could use some help...the only one in Vancouver closed a little over two years ago. Never been to Finn McCools. The one thing that should be noted is that Berkshire and Fairfax shareholders always want the companies BRK and FFH invested in to be really well run, top notch, clean, excellent service, etc. But remember, that these businesses are what they are. Even if Berkshire buys McDonalds, it will never be as clean as a Sees Candies. The culture of the two businesses are different. The expectations, traffic, etc are all different. I remember when I first became a Berkshire shareholder, I would always wish that local DQ's were run better...I expected better, because these were BRK businesses! But they are what they are. BRK bought them because they generate plenty of free cash flow...not because they are Five Guys or In & Out. Fairfax can improve some of these operations to a certain degree, but if you start to detach from what has worked, you may impact the cash you generate because you lose the existing clients or you impact margins with increased expenditures. Can you imagine McEwen revamping East Side Mario's menu and adding a mushroom truffle oil risotto? I'm guessing margins would shrink to the same level as McEwens high-end restaurants! Cheers!

I believe January 28th is the latest they can file - check out the link here: https://www.osc.gov.on.ca/en/Companies_filing-calendar_index.htm Correct. We plan on filing before that, but that is the official deadline. Thanks! Don't get your hopes up for a stellar report! I don't want our shareholders to be excited or depressed either way, but to understand that progress is being made. Until we make those one or two acquisitions that bring in $1-1.5M in positive free cash flow, or Sequant is out of start-up mode, you will see losses. We had three deals go sideways this year, but we won't pay up or compromise. We hope to close on a couple in 2016 that will turn the tide. The report will be out closer to the end of the month, so a couple of weeks away still, but I will let you know as much as I can in the annual letter about what is happening. Cheers and thanks for your support!

You are correct. But he's simply discussing that the field of winners narrows so dramatically over time in these bubble industries, that anyone trying to buy for the long-term is likely going to get burned at some point. While right now, the carcass of one of these so-called winners from the automotive age is selling at horse and buggy multiples...which company or companies would you say provide the greater margin of safety...GM or a basket of internet darlings? Cheers!

Regardless of a new website, I've emailed Paul Rivett for you...it will get to the top at Cara! Can you send me your email or phone number (cornerofberkshireandfairfax@gmail.com), and I'll forward it to Paul, in case anyone at Cara wants to contact you. Cheers!

Seminar on Value Investing and the Search for Value July 18-22, 2016 Toronto, ON This seminar, taught by Dr. George Athanassakos (Professor of Finance and the Ben Graham Chair in Value Investing at the Ivey Business School, Western University), is geared towards financial professionals and individual investors seeking to enhance their knowledge of value creation, valuation and value investing theory and practice. Mr. Francis Chou, President, Chou Associates Management Inc., will be a guest speaker on July 22. For more information see, http://valueinvestingeducation.com/seminars.htm Cheers!

Nice, little slideshow. Cheers! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-NXDCXzrao

Wishing you all the best for Christmas and 2016! Thanks for your contributions and support for "Corner of Berkshire and Fairfax". Also enclosed is our company Christmas email which is equally addressed to the board members here...who I consider my "friends"! Cheers!

Interesting analyst report regarding Fairfax's insurance businesses. Ironically, at the same time Greenlight Re and Third Point Re are struggling! Cheers! http://dashboard.cormark.com/servlet/display.pdf?repid=jfenwick%40cormark%2Ecom_20151214130804604&userid=jlotesto%40cormark%2Ecom

Hi Folks, I have to be careful what I discuss with you guys, but I will try and give what color I can: - in terms of buybacks...because we have a certain burn rate at head office and with Sequant Re, buying back shares is only useful to us if we can buy back those shares at below cash/share where it is accretive, as we will need that cash for at least the next year or so. Once the company is fully profitable, then we can consider using excess cash to buy back shares. - in terms of a reverse split...a lot of the original investors have a negative mentality when it comes to reverse splits, so we are hesitant to do this at the moment...it also won't help us or our shareholders significantly while on the CSE. A reverse split will improve trading and associated costs, etc once we list on the TSXV or even directly on to the TSE big board. Also as mentioned, each time we do an information circular and have to involve Computershare and Broadridge, our cost is around $50-80K...like the tender for Russell. We only want to spend that money if it will meaningfully benefit shareholders and the company. - I cannot espouse patience enough for our shareholders...some years we'll be very busy and some years quiet, but underneath a lot is happening. We've had three deals go sideways this year simply because negotiations at the highest levels couldn't come to agreement. We have to do what is right for our shareholders first and make sure we always have a huge margin of safety. - As mentioned, our goal is to make sure the company is fully profitable and that we are increasing shareholder value. Last year, we got our Burnaby clinic up and running, and now it is thriving and we are seeing the success of those efforts. There is a tremendous amount of work being done at Sequant...it is becoming a world-class start-up and I expect 2016 to show considerable fruits from the Sequant team's hard work. You will hear about the progress finally making headway in China...as well as what is happening at Russell...and we hope to certainly close on at least 2 deals in 2016...all of this will be discussed in our annual letter, at the AGM and in Toronto. In the meantime, here is a story in Canadian Business Journal on PDH. Enjoy! http://www.cbj.ca/EMAG/2015/Dec/CBJ.php#114 All the best, Sanjeev

Hail the new Trump! Cheers!

Hi Folks, Details for our annual dinner. Tickets will go fast, so please buy them now...I can always refund closer to the date if you decide not to attend, but I cannot provide a ticket if we are sold out! We had over 180 people attend last year and we will probably blow through 200 this year. To buy tickets, go to: www.cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca Scroll down half the page...Select the type of ticket you want, and click "Buy Now"! Please review the details below for the dinner. Cheers! 11th Annual Fairfax Financial Shareholder’s Dinner CMC Fairfax Financial Shareholder’s Dinner Imperial Room - Main Lobby Level Wednesday, April 13th, 2016 Fairmont Royal York 100 Front Street West Toronto, Ontario (416) 368-2511 Presentation Only - $100.00 CDN Presentation & Expansive Full-Buffet Dinner - $200.00 CDN Cash Bar If anyone is interested in corporate sponsorship of prizes, or any donors for prizes, please contact me at cornerofberkshireandfairfax@gmail.com.

Get your tickets folks...about 1/3rd sold already! I can refund later, but I can't sell you a ticket if we are sold out. Cheers!