This 1991 Barron’s interview with Seth Klarman offers some intriguing insights into how Baupost got its start, and the nature of Klarman’s initial client base and business structure. Baupost currently manages ~$32 Billion AUM (per latest firm ADV), whereas ~24 years ago that figure stood at $400mm, and ~33 years ago only $27mm. Time + compounding […]
People often remark that “AUM is the enemy of performance.” But is this truly always the case? Here’s another thought-provoking excerpt from Stephen Duneier of Bija Capital Management that explores the nuances of the AUM-Performance relationship. AUM, Expected Return, Sizing, Selectivity, Liquidity “Since becoming a portfolio manager more than ten years ago, I have managed […]
Below are excerpts from a speech Bob Rodriguez of First Pacific Advisors gave in May 2009. Quite a few interesting lessons derived from his previous trials and tribulations in dealing with clients and redemptions during periods of contrarian actions and underperformance. Psychology “I believe I have found success because I have been deeply aware of […]
During 1969, the Partnership transitioned into Berkshire Hathaway. Therefore this concludes our series on portfolio management and the Buffett Partnership Letters. Please see our previous articles in this series. Control, Hurdle Rate, Compounding, When To Sell “…controlled companies (which represent slightly over one-third of net assets at the beginning of the year)…we cannot make the same sort […]
Part 2 of portfolio management highlights extracted from an August 2010 WealthTrack interview with Consuelo Mack (in my opinion, WealthTrack really is an underrated treasure trove of investment wisdom). Be sure to check out Part 1. AUM, Compounding, Subscription, Redemptions “MACK: There’s a saying on Wall Street…that size is the enemy of performance… BERKOWITZ: …we think about […]
Continuation of our series on portfolio management and the Buffett Partnership Letters, please see our previous articles for more details. Conservatism, Volatility “Proponents of institutional investing frequently cite its conservative nature. If ‘conservatism’ is interpreted to mean ‘productive of results varying only slightly from average experience,’ I believe the characterization is proper…However, I believe that conservatism is […]
Continuation of our series on portfolio management and the Buffett Partnership Letters, please see our previous articles for more details. AUM, Trackrecord, Sizing “…I believe that we have done somewhat better during the past few years with the capital we have had in the Partnership than we would have done if we had been working with a […]
Before my November vacation, I will leave you with a juicy Baupost piece compiled through various sources that shall remain confidential. Instead of the usual excerpts or quotes, below are summaries of ideas and concepts. Creativity, Making Mistakes False precision is dangerous. Klarman doesn’t believe that a computer can be programmed to invest the way […]
The following portfolio management related excerpts are extracted from Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville, an article based on a speech Warren Buffett gave at Columbia Business School on May 17, 1984 Risk, Expected Return. Volatility “Sometimes risk and reward are correlated in a positive fashion. If someone were to say to me, ‘I have here a […]
Continuation in a series on portfolio management and the Buffett Partnership Letters, please see our previous articles for more details. Topics covered include: When To Buy, When To Sell, Activism, Catalyst, AUM When To Buy, Activism, Catalyst, Control “…controls develop from the general category. They results from situations where a cheap security does nothing price-wise […]
This post is a continuation in a series on portfolio management and the Buffett Partnership Letters. Please refer to the initial post in this series for more details. During 1961, Buffett started to write semi-annual letters because his clients told him the annual letter was “a long time between drinks.” The summary below is derived […]
Seth Klarman of Baupost is a great investor. Jason Zweig is a great writer. When combined, we get a great Klarman-Zweig Interview published Fall 2010 in the Financial Analyst Journal (Volume 66 Number 5) by the CFA Institute. Here is Part 1 of tidbits from that conversation. Part 2 is available here. Volatility Graham and Dodd’s […]