#57 - Buffett’s Timeless Truths for Investors

Author

Graham Schroeder
May 09, 2025

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Market Recap

  • Warren Buffett to Step Down as Berkshire Hathaway CEO

    • After more than six decades at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett announced he will step down as CEO at the end of 2025, capping one of the most legendary runs in business history.

    • The 94-year-old investor confirmed during the company’s annual meeting that he will formally recommend Greg Abel, Berkshire’s Vice Chairman of Non-Insurance Operations, to take over day-to-day leadership. Abel, who’s long been considered Buffett’s successor reportedly learned of the timing during the meeting itself.

    • Analysts say capital allocation may become more decentralized, with Berkshire’s various division heads gaining more influence.

  • Apple Eyes AI Search Integration in Safari

    • Apple $AAPL ( ▲ 2.25% ) is actively exploring the integration of AI-powered search engines into its Safari browser, potentially ending its longstanding partnership with Google $GOOGL ( ▼ 3.85% ) as the default search provider.

    • The move could significantly impact Google's search advertising revenue, as the company currently pays Apple approximately $20 billion annually to remain the default search engine on Safari.

    • Alphabet's stock experienced a sharp decline following the news, reflecting investor concerns about the potential loss of a major revenue stream and the growing competition from AI-driven search technologies.

  • U.S.-U.K. Trade Deal Announced Amid Tariff Tensions

    • President Donald Trump unveiled a new trade agreement with the United Kingdom, aiming to boost U.S. exports by $5 billion.

    • The deal includes increased U.K. imports of U.S. agricultural products like ethanol and beef, lowered tariffs on specific U.K. steel and auto imports, and a $10 billion Boeing $BA ( ▲ 0.54% ) aircraft purchase by a U.K. company.

    • Despite these concessions, the U.S.'s 10% baseline tariff, implemented in April, remains in place, and analysts caution that the agreement may not serve as a model for more complex trade negotiations with larger economies.

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Freedom Fund Portfolio

This week the public account paced up nearly a half a percent amidst a bevy of Q1 earnings taking shape. Currently outside of $SHOP ( ▲ 0.41% ) , $SOFI ( ▼ 1.04% ) , and $GOOGL ( ▼ 3.85% ) I am going to continue to beef up my REIT and ETF positions until I feel ready to make a buy signal on a new position. Outside of Teradyne $TER ( ▲ 0.04% ) (my thesis back in September hasn’t really paid off) I feel pretty comfortable with my current position stack. Evolv Technologies $EVLV ( ▲ 3.62% ) long awaiting delayed earnings is finally happening on May 20th. Watch for a short term price run up following its 36% jump the past month leading up to it over the next 11 days.

  • Portfolio Earnings

Freedom Fund Background: I created the Freedom Fund as a public brokerage account back in October of 2022 to share that anyone with a social security # and a bank account can begin their investing journey by investing a couple hundred dollars a week. Every week and month I post on X (@GrahamInvesting) public updates about the purchases, exits, dividends, and growth of the fund if you want to follow in real time. The biggest obstacle people have to investing is just getting started so I decided to start a new account at $0 to start from nothing with you. .

Warren’s Last Trade: A Life Well Compounded

After spending a life shaping markets, mentoring investors, and compounding wealth at a generational pace, Buffett announcing his retirement is truly an end of an era. At 94 years old, the man who turned a failing textile mill into a global powerhouse is handing over the reins and with it, one of the most respected investing legacies in history.

There’s no shortage of noise in the world of investing. Everyone has hot takes, chart watching gurus, and Twitter-finance philosophers (yes I still call it Twitter) spewing bull and bear cases daily. But every now and then, it's worth slowing down and revisiting the fundamentals. Warren Buffett didn’t get rich by being loud. He got rich by being patient, disciplined, and wildly consistent.

Here are five of Buffett’s most famous quotes and why they still hit just as hard today:

  • “Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.”

    • Market panic is a buy signal. Herd behavior is usually wrong.
      Buffett made billions buying quality when others were too scared to touch it. There is lots of opportunities to make money chasing the hot stock or trending new industry. But in the long run the best investing edge you can take is to find strong profitable companies with economic moats that are undervalued. When everyone is running away from a red market be like Warren, find the diamond in the rough.

  • “The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient.” 

    • Success doesn’t go to the smartest it goes to the steadiest.
      This one should be printed on every brokerage login screen. With crypto, day trading, and meme stocks everyone thinks they know what they are doing when it comes to investing. If you are constantly chasing the pump and dumps and not building a well diverse portfolio with companies and index equities that will be around 20 years from now you are going to be burning up your cash fast. The more patient you are in your investments and believe in your research the more successful you will be.

  • “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.”

    • Don’t confuse a cheap price with a good deal. Buffett looks for businesses trading at a discount to their intrinsic value not just ones on sale. It’s the backbone of value investing, look past the sticker price and figure out what something is really worth. Just because a stock is valued under $10 a share doesn’t mean its going to 1000x. And just because a stock is valued at $500 a share doesn’t mean its over valued. Read the earnings, understand the business, figure out if its value is strong or weak within the industry it operates.

  • “It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked.”

    • Easy markets hide bad behavior. Crashes expose it. From meme stocks to overleveraged portfolios, downturns show who built on sand. Many inexperience investors trade with margin. Many people trade the hottest stock too late. Analyze your portfolio for its yearly gains. However, also don’t forget to evaluate what might happen to it if another recession happens (which it will). The value is of building a portfolio based in growth, value, and income is the tried method to building a bulletproof portfolio. Don’t get caught with your pants down because you went all in on some penny stock called Aerotyne International that is awaiting a cutting edge patent approval and it turned out to be a fraud.

  • Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No. 1.”

    • Investing is not about avoiding all losses because to make it big you have to take risks. It’s about respecting the power of compounding. Preservation of capital is step one. Everything else is secondary. Max out your compounding machine in your Roth and 401ks index funds first before you start taking your swings at individual stock trading. No one wants to find out that Grandpa lost his entire retirement fortune because he decided to go all in on some unknown stock he heard about on Reddit. Stack the indexes first and play with the rest.

Buffett’s brilliance isn’t just in what he bought it’s how he thought. But if you’re in this for the long game, his wisdom is a compass worth keeping close. In a world chasing fast money, Buffett reminds us that boring often wins.

I hope Warren gets to enjoy many more Egg McMuffins and Diet Coke in his retirement and enjoys his wealth a little. No matter the size of our egos and ambition I think its safe to say we can all take a play out of his playbook and be humble, curious, and kind no matter where life takes us.

The purpose of this newsletter is to encourage you and our other 91 Gazette subscribers to start and stay consistent with your personal, professional, and financial journey.

Thanks for investing your time reading this.

Disclaimer: Graham’s Gazette provides information and resources related to investing, financial topics, and personal growth for educational and entertainment purposes only. The content presented is not intended to be construed as financial advice. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with qualified professionals before making any financial decisions. Graham’s Gazette and its creators do not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the information provided nor do they guarantee any specific results from such use of information.