Secret Of Warren Buffett's Investing Success

Morgan Housel MSN Money February 2, 2011

2/1/2011 4:46 PM ET

By Morgan Housel, The Motley Fool

The Oracle's respect for business people he trusts -- and who trust him -- allows Buffett to buy into top companies on favorable terms.

Related topics: Warren Buffett, Washington Post, media, Coca-Cola, Berkshire Hathaway

After his recent announcement that he'll step down as a director of Washington Post (WPO, news) when his term expires in May, Warren Buffett made it clear that his investment vehicle, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B, news), isn't abandoning its longtime investment in the company.

"We're going to keep every share of stock we have," he said. "I would never sell a share of the Post."

Never?

What's interesting about his comment is that the newspaper industry isn't protected by an enduring moat like, say, Coca-Cola (KO, news), is. It's a dying business with scant hope of turning itself around. How do I know? Buffett said so.

Investing basics from Buffett

"Twenty to 40 years ago, (newspapers) were essential to customers and advertisers," Buffett said two years ago. "They had pricing power, but (it) essentiality has eroded. Erosion accelerated dramatically, and it won't end based on anything on the horizon. We do not see anything to reverse it. They are essential to advertisers only as long as they're essential to readers."

Buffett then gave his stance on selling his newspaper investments: "As long as we're not losing money forever and there are no union problems, we won't sell," he said. "We'll play it out as long as we can." /*

To be fair to the Post, after a decade of diversification, the company is more than a newspaper publisher. For-profit education and cable TV now account for nearly all of its operating profit. This, though, hasn't exactly turned the company into a durable franchise -- if there are two industries whose futures look as scary as newspapers, it's for-profit education and cable TV.

Loyal to a fault?

So why does Buffett hold a till-death-do-us-part attitude?

I think his comment about newspapers underlines a key reason Berkshire has been so successful. Buffett will, to an extent, stick with lousy investments because he has made a commitment to the company, its managers and its employees.

Consider what Buffett once said about why a business would be better off selling itself to Berkshire than being bought out by private-equity investors. "You can sell it to Berkshire, and we'll put it in the Metropolitan Museum. It'll have a wing all by itself . . . it'll be there forever. Or you can sell it to some porn-shop operator and he'll take the painting and he'll make the boobs a little bigger, and he'll stick it up in the window and some guy will come along in a raincoat and he'll buy it."

Or this line, spoken to a reporter who asked Buffett why businesses looking to sell should come to him first: "If they care about the business and how the people are treated afterwards, Berkshire will be the best option."

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So why does Buffett hold a till-death-do-us-part attitude?

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Secret Of Warren Buffett's Investing Success

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