Every year for almost 60 years, Warren Buffett has written a letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders. And that letter has become one of the most anticipated pieces of writing in the finance industry. Last weekend, Buffett released his 2022 letter and as always, it is worth reading.
The Berkshire Hathaway example is an amazing example of the power of long-term investing. In 1995, Berkshire spent $1.3 billion buying shares in American express. Today that investment is worth $22 billion and last year Berkshire was paid $302 million in dividends. Similarly, in 1994, Berkshire spent $1.3 billion buying shares in Coca-Cola. Today that investment is worth $25 billion and last year Berkshire was paid $704 million.
Doing absolutely nothing and letting your best investments compound year-after-year can create pretty incredible results.
Buffett has now been investing for 80 years, which is more than one-third of the time that the United States of America has been a country (247 years). He is the textbook example of long term investing and the power of compounding. And his letters are always filled with simple and timeless wisdom from the best to have ever done it.
This is an excerpt from our Thought Starters email. Once a week we send you 5 interesting articles that have caught our attention, to get you thinking. No spam, we guarantee.