总之,在这笔交易中,伯克希尔的所有投资综合起来有6%的回报,还不包括期权、优先股转股溢价和公司未来内在价值的成长。即使亨氏将来经营不善,伯克希尔还能收到优先股分红。甚至,万一公司破产了,伯克希尔也能在其他债权人之前,在重组亨氏公司时居于有利的地位。
准则:理性
从伯克希尔的投资组合中,很容易看出亨氏食品属于巴菲特喜欢的公司类型:生意模式简单易懂;具有长期持续的运营历史;而且,因为亨氏占据了新兴市场的有利地位,公司具有良好的长期远景。公司投资资产回报率(包括负债)为17%,股东权益回报率为35%。
但是在亨氏食品的投资案例中,与巴菲特做出的其他投资相比较,有两个特别需要警惕之处。首先,亨氏食品每1美元净资产对应有6美元的负债。伯克希尔持有的优先股9%所产生的利息占了公司盈余的相当部分。换言之,公司负债水平很高。
其次,公司更换了所有管理层,新的管理团队来自3G资本,它的主人是巴西最富有的人乔格·保罗·莱曼。
过去,巴菲特购买公司后,倾向于保留现有的管理团队继续运营。但在这个案例中,未来运营亨氏的角色由新的管理层担当。
巴菲特第一次遇见莱曼是在20世纪90年代,在吉列公司的董事会上。尽管莱曼和3G资本在美国并不知名,但他们在巴西的快餐业、银行业、啤酒业取得了巨大的成功。2004年,莱曼领导的规模较小的巴西美洲啤酒公司,与体量大很多的世界啤酒巨头比利时英博啤酒公司(成立于1366年,旗下有时代啤酒、贝克啤酒品牌)合并,这一事件被视为其事业的分水岭。2008年,在莱曼主导下,这家新公司支付520亿美元,与安海斯-布希公司合并,这是迄今为止世界上最大的并购案。合并后的公司更名为安海斯-布希英博公司,成为啤酒行业全球老大。
2010年,3G资本以330亿美元收购了快餐连锁公司汉堡王,数周之内,就解雇了迈阿密总部的一半雇员600人,卖掉了公司行政专用飞机,并规定今后员工需要得到许可才能进行彩色打印。收购之后,3G资本削减了30%的运营成本。同时,每个连锁店都引进了新的产品,包括沙冰、小吃等,并进行了一场连锁店重塑运动,其费用由加盟商支付。2012年第四季度,汉堡王报出了靓丽的财报,现金流得到改善,利润翻了一番。
研究3G资本的投资管理和它做过的每一项成功投资,让我想起了被巴菲特称赞为世界上最好的管理者——大都会的墨菲,他大刀阔斧地削减不必要的成本、提高工作效率,和3G资本公司所做的一样。
一些人认为,3G资本作为私募机构,可能很快会将亨氏食品股份卖掉,而不会长期持有。莱曼坚持说,持有亨氏将是一个长期行为,就像他们长期持有啤酒公司,将其打造为整合啤酒业的一个平台,分享未来成长一样,他们也会将亨氏公司作为早期平台,用以整合和分享未来食品业的成长。
无论3G公司将来是持有还是卖出,巴菲特都乐于成为长期持有者。他说:“亨氏是3G的孩子。如果3G想卖出股份,我们也愿意接手。”56
一个共同的标准
通过这些投资案例,你可能会注意到贯穿其间的一个标准:沃伦·巴菲特从不着急卖出股票,即便在他买入后,这些股票表现良好,但股价短期的上升并不令他感兴趣,菲利普·费雪教会巴菲特持有企业好过持有现金。巴菲特说他“满足于无限期持有这些企业,只要它们能产出令人满意的资产回报,管理层能够诚信,以及股价没有过高。”57(这些是否令你想起那些准则?)如同他提醒股东的话,他喜欢的持有期限是“永远”。
通过这些令人难忘的案例,巴菲特将我们带到了硬币的另一面:在确定购买哪个股票时如何做出理性的决定?我们应该如何管理投资组合?这正是下一章的主题。
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2.The Washington Post Company Annual Report, 1991, 2.
3.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1992, 5.
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5.Chalmers M. Roberts, The Washington Post: The First 100 Years (Boston:Houghton Mifflin, 1977), 449.
6.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1991,8.
7.Ibid., 9.
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11.Beth Brophy, “After the Fall and Rise,” Forbes, February 2,1981, 86.
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16.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1991,8.
17.Bianco, “Why Warren Buffett Is Breaking His Own Rules.”
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19.Capital Cities/ABC Inc. Annual Report, 1992.
20.“A Star Is Born,” BusinessWeek,April 1,1985, 77.
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22.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1985,20.
23.Roger Lowenstein, Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist (New York:Random House, 1995), 323.
24.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1993, 14.
25.Kilpatrick, Warren Buffett: The Good Guy of Wall Street, 123.
26.Mark Pendergrast, Far God, Country and Coca-Cola (New York: Scribners, 1993).
27.Art Harris, “The Man Who Changed the Real Thing,” Washington Post, July 22,1985, Bl.
28.“Strategy of the 1980s,” Coca-Cola Company.
29.Ibid.
30.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1992, 13.
31.Ibid.
32.John Dorfman, “Wells Fargo Has Bulls and Bears; So Who’s Right?,” Wall StreetJournal, November 1,1990,Cl.
33.Ibid.
34.John Liscio, “Trading Points,” Barron’s, October 29,1990, 51.
35.Berkshire Hathaway Letters to Shareholders, 1977-1983, 15.
36.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1990, 16.
37.Reid Nagle, “Interpreting the Banking Numbers,” in The Financial Services Industry-Banks, Thrifts,Insurance Companies, and Securities Firms, ed. Alfred C.Morley, 25-41 (Charlottesville, VA: Association of Investment Managementand Research, 1991).
38.“CEO Silver Award,” Financial World,April 5, 1988, 92.
39.Gary Hector, “Warren Buffett’s Favorite Banker,” Forbes, October 18,1993, 46.
40.Berkshire Hathaway Anrnial Report, 1990, 16.
41.Ibid.
42.Ibid.
43.R. Hutchings Vernon, “Mother of All Annual Meetings,” Barron’s May 6, 1991.
44.John Taylor, “A Leveraged Bet,” Forbes, April 15,1991, 42.
45.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1994, 17.
46.Dominic Rushe, “Warren Buffett Buys 10bn IBM Stake,” The Guardian,November 14, 2011.
47.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 2011, 7.
48.Ibid.
49.Ibid., 6.
50.Ibid., 7.
51.Rushe,“Warren Buffett Buys 1Obn IBM Stake.”
52.I am grateful to Grady Buckett, CFA, director of technology at Morningstar,for his tutorial.
53.Steve Lohr, “IBM Delivers Solid Quarterly Profits,” New York Times, July 18, 2012.
54.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 2011, 7.
55.Quote from Warren Buffett on CNBC, February 14,2013.
56.Michael de La Merced and Andrew Ross Sorkin, “Berkshire and 3G Capital ina 23 Billion Deal for Heinz,” New York Times,February 19, 2013.
57.Berkshire Hathaway Annual Report, 1987, 15.