April 26, 2007
Louis Simpson: Unfancy Man with Fancy Returns
A Maestro of Investments in the Style of Buffett, by G. Fabrikant
A rare interview with Geico’s Louis Simpson:
“I have always felt I could do a better job in adding value by being somewhat removed from the circus and parimutuel atmosphere of the market … We are sort of the polar opposites of a lot of investors. We do a lot of thinking and not a lot of acting. A lot of investors do a lot of acting, and not a lot of thinking … If I have the Bloomberg on, I find I am looking at what the market is doing. I am looking at every news story. I really like to be the one who is parsing the information, rather than having a lot of irrelevant information thrown at me.”
Cat: | Time: 11:22 am (utc+8)
April 26th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
Most market data on a daily basis is noise.
April 26th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
manuel: I agree, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a buck off of it.
April 26th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
In my opinion the ‘noise’ gives the best entries and exits.
April 26th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
The daily market noise is good for traders. Simpson and Buffett are long term investors that are concern with the fundamentals of a business, not a companies daily story.
April 27th, 2007 at 2:55 am
Totally off-topic, Chairman, but I seem to remember reading here previously about Zimbabwe’s inflation. This is on Bloomberg today: “Zimbabwe Devalues Currency by 98% to Boost Exports”. Now that’s a helicopter drop!
April 27th, 2007 at 7:19 am
Great article. I am a trader instead of an investor, and I still find public media such as Bloomberg, CNBC or chat rooms distracting, even annoying. When I trade during the day, it is only live market data and me. I also prefer to make my own decisions and accept the results rather than be told what to think and what to do. Guess that is why I have chose this career.
April 27th, 2007 at 8:09 am
Ollie: Time to chop off more zeros!
Lyyn: I agree. Even while day trading I prefer listening to music and never would have a TV on.
April 28th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
[…] I was reminded of this bit from the Louis Simpson profile: In 1979 Geico’s chairman, John J. Byrne, sent several candidates to see Mr. Buffett about the chief investment officer job. After a four-hour interview with Mr. Simpson, Mr. Buffett called Mr. Byrne. “Stop the search,” Mr. Bryne recalled him saying. “That’s the fellow.” […]