Key Quotes from 1995 Shareholder Letter

1. "Our favorite acquisition is the negotiated transaction that allows us to purchase 100% of such a business at a fair price. But we are almost as happy when the stock market offers us the chance to buy a modest percentage of an outstanding business at a pro-rata price well below what it would take to buy 100%."

2. "Things are seldom what they seem, skim milk masquerades as cream."

3. "Our favorite acquisition is the negotiated transaction... We don't have a strategic plan. Thus we feel no need to proceed in an ordained direction."

4. "Dealmaking is exciting and fun, and working is grubby. Running anything is primarily an enormous amount of grubby detail work... dealmaking is romantic, sexy. That's why you have deals that make no sense."

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Source: Full Letter