His full name is Warren Edward Buffett. He was born in Omaha on August 30, 1939. He is currently an American investor and businessman. This man is considered one of the best investors in the world, as well as the largest shareholder and also the CEO of the brand b. Since 2017, he has been considered the second richest man in the world.
His early years:
His father was a well-known stockbroker. As a young man, he delivered newspapers to earn money, and probably, according to him, that’s when his interest in media was awakened, where he later made several very successful investments—one of them being in The Washington Post, a stake that has brought him a lot of money and which he seems to have no intention of selling.
1950s:
One of the biggest setbacks and disappointments in his life came from his mentor, Benjamin Graham. Although Buffett was the only one to receive an A+ in one of Graham’s classes, both his father and the professor did not want him to go to Wall Street, and the professor rejected Warren’s offer to work for him for free. Eventually, that decision was reversed and he called him back some time later.
From 1950 to 1956, Warren increased his capital from $9,800 to $140,000. He began working with his professor in an office where they spent their days analyzing many stock market reports.
Eventually, Graham retired, and Warren started a limited partnership in Omaha using capital from his family and several friends. It was a success, and since then it has achieved an average annual return of up to 25%, much higher than the market average.
1980s:
By then, Warren was already well known and had bought several companies and made investments. But between 1980 and 1990, Warren, together with his company Berkshire, bought Nebraska Furniture Mart and Scott & Fetzer, and also made a significant investment in Coca-Cola.
1990 to 2000:
This man established a friendship with Charlie Munger, a great lawyer and investor, and Munger joined Warren’s company as vice chairman, alter ego, and friend. Whenever Charlie is mentioned, Warren is the first to acknowledge his contribution to the company’s success.
2000 to 2010:
With the turn of the century, many doubted Warren because of his low returns, but they were proven wrong with the dot-com bubble. Warren never invested in products he didn’t understand, which kept him safe from market volatility.
Later on, he made his largest purchase together with Mars. In 2008, the largest candy company in the United States was created with a value of 23 billion dollars.
Then in 2009, he bought the railroad company Burlington Northern Santa Fe for 44 billion dollars, of which he already owned 22%. Out of those 44 billion dollars paid, he also covered the company’s debt.