A couple weeks ago I attended the Berkshire Hathaway AGM and the Fairfax AGM back in April. I’ve documented some of my past trips (here, here, here, and here ). And the Internet is full of reviews of people who have been. Every time the experience is similar and different.
It took me a while to get this post going. A month actually. I was wondering what can I write about the meeting that hasn’t been written? What is there to say that hasn’t been said?
Q1 2023 hedge fund letters, conferences and more
Regarding Berkshire Hathaway (BRK), the substance of the meeting has been decorticated and analyzed. I won’t rehash what has been said. However I will touch on two points: 1) Buffett provided the closest thing to earning guidance. He expects earnings to be down. 2) Some people said that Buffett, the ever optimist, had a pessimistic tone. In a sense it was true and uncharacteristic of Buffett. But I think what he said has been misquoted through the doomsday clickbait. What’s been overlooked is that he also said that if you believe in what made this country great, you will do fine too. He’s always reiterating that it doesn’t make sense to bet against America. He repeated multiple times that the USA is where he would choose to be a newborn.
Regarding the Fairfax AGM, it was a good meeting. It’s similar to BRK, but on a smaller scale. It was good to participate in various events and reseeing friends that I haven’t seen in a long time. Like the BRK AGM, over the years an ecosystem has been built around the Fairfax AGM.
Instead of repeating what has been said about the BRK AGM, I’ll touch on a couple observations. Little things that don’t necessarily get covered.
“The Meeting is Online”
When I tell people that I’m going to Omaha for the BRK AGM, some have to remind me that the meeting is online. Thank you for the reminder. I’m not in Omaha by mistake. Usually the comment is made by someone who has never been. I understand the intent. But we all know that a Zoom meeting is not the same as a physical one. If you have been to Omaha, well you know.
If you have seen your favorite artist perform live, you know it’s not the same as streaming their music.
Going to Omaha for the AGM is not the point. It’s bigger than the meeting. I can catch the meeting later on Youtube here, which I do for parts of it.
So why go?
If you are a serious investor, or a student of investing, and you want to improve, I highly suggest you attend at least once.
But the biggest reason is The People.
It’s about the people. The events. The networking. To see friends and make new ones. There are people from all over the world. There are not many occasions where I can talk shop with people from China, Singapore, Europe etc…
There’s a massive intangible impact. I came back with a bunch of investment opportunities. Ideas. Stuff to work on. And hopefully I’m smarter and better.
Investing is a little bit of a lone wolf endeavor. It’s a lonely quest. Yeah, I meet and talk to other investors. But not everyone. You just can’t. In Omaha, it feels like everyone is there.
During my 4 days in Omaha, I had a bunch of meetings, but you need to leave some space for happenstance. You never know who you are going to meet.
I ran into Jim Pattison, the Canadian billionaire. Here’s a good Globe and Mail article on him. There’s a little of a story here, but to make to short, I bought him an ice cream.
This lucky billionaire got an ice cream from me
Diversity of the Crowd
The BRK AGM has been dubbed the “Woodstock for Capitalists”.
It carries its name well.
It’s not just a value investing fest. There’s all kinds of investors. Venture capitalists, quant people, students, day traders, whatever style, you name it, it’s there. You have Buffett/Munger fan boys. You have people who are curious that have no investments. You also have investment managers and different businesses promoting their own funds/business with various events.
I even stumbled in an Oracle meeting.
Oracle: “Are you with Oracle?”
Me: Oracle? No. Why is Oracle here?
Oracle: “We are meeting executives from BRK businesses…”
So on top of the various kinds of investors, and BRK executives, you have sales people targeting them.
Exhibition Hall
I was a little disappointed with the exhibition hall this year. If you like shopping, then you would love it. But I don’t care much for the shopping, or massive line ups. What I like about the exhibition hall is meeting the managers of the various businesses and picking their brains. I used to do that during the BRK meeting. I would go to the exhibition floor when it was quiet and just talk to the managers.
In past years, I felt a balance between shopping and business information booths. You could walk around and learn about some of the businesses BRK owned, both small and big. This year, shopping dominated. The stores, like See’s Candy, took a lot of space. And they were all packed. Overcrowded. Even during the AGM.
The show stealer this year were Squishmallows, a business that came with the Alleghany acquisition. These things sold like warm bread.
Squishmallow throne
Security
A notable change since I started going in 2015 is security. In 2015 I didn’t see any. I’m sure there were some, but I didn’t notice it. You could walk right into the exhibition hall. Buffett and Bill Gates would walk around in the crowd. Those days are over.
Now security is tight. Buffett doesn’t roam around in the exhibition hall visiting businesses and meeting investors (I’m sure age is a factor too). You and your belongings get screened when you walk in. There’s a lot of armed security and cops with AR 15. Snipers in the rafter during the AGM. Unfortunately that’s the new normal.
The BRK AGM has always attracted a crowd of protestors. It’s a blend of groups and they have gotten more zealous over time. Ranging from NetJets pilots demanding higher wages to pro-life protesters, conspiracy theorists, and environmentalists. Looks, it’s fine. I don’t have a beef with any groups. You can believe in whatever you want. They are allowed to be there protesting. It’s a free country. It’s your right. But why are you screaming at people? In some cases insulting them. Here’s a tip: If you are trying to get somebody to your side, screaming at them won’t help (I’m not talking about the Netjet pilots here). I talked to a NetJet pilot at the picket line. Nice fella but doesn’t seem to be convinced in his cause.
I remember you could just ignore them. Now, some of them are yelling at you. I’m not trying to misportrait or scare you or anything. It’s a minority of people. It’s just an observation. This year they changed how you wait in line for the meeting so you don’t have to be yelled at.
Uber
Uber ride from the airport: “You’re from Canada! Do you know Bret Hart?”
It can be expensive getting around Omaha during BRK AGM. Fares fluctuate a lot. But there’s also the hidden fees. Maybe I’m not using it right, but I only see the full fare later once I’m billed.
Despite that, it’s still a superior offer to taxis. I had a great chat with the drivers and they are a great source of local intel.
Cinco de Mayo
Mexican Independence day. It’s the first time I notice it, but that Mexican holiday became a major party in the USA. I just can’t get my head around a bunch of Midwesterners celebrating a Mexican holiday. Maybe it’s like a new St-Patrick day.
“You coming out for Cinco de Mayo?”
Do we need another excuse to drink?
Stock Pitch
I attended a “stock pitch” event. It was informal (no slides). Everyone had to bring an idea to share and discuss. I won’t go over all of them, but let’s just say that there were a lot of global micro caps that I never heard of. As the event went on, it felt like the market cap of these companies kept getting smaller and smaller. Somebody pitched a $2 million market cap company. I said I have a smaller one, a small bank called First Republic, and it’s a zero.
