Cautions: in the year 2000 after huge gains in the previous 17 years of the entire stock market, Warren Buffet was asked to predict what he expected stock market returns to be over the next 17 years. His answer was 4%
Between the years 2000 and 2005 the total return on Berkshire Hathaway was 0, that's right , zero.
More than half of Berkshire hathaway is in 2 insurance companies, GEICO (the gecko auto insurance company) and General RE, a reinsurance company.
I like Berkshire Hathaway very much. His business purchases are based on cash flow of the business. His annual reports in the past have given his 4 principles for buying a business (or a stock):
1. honest competent management
2. Long term favorable prospects (buying brands with pricing power)
3. Understandable businesses(cash flow, no technology that can go out of date)
4. He only buys at a good price based on cash flow.
The financial company he became a director for was Salomon Brothers, and he owned most of the company. He joined the board after the company illegally tried to gain a monopoly on Treasury bonds sales and almost wrecked the world's economy.