left;">Wally Weitz’s commentaries on some of the stocks he just bought or sold: Washington Mutual (WM), American Express (AXP), UPS (UPS) and TD Ameritrade (AMTD) etc.
Wally Weitz, known as the other Oracle of Omaha, had a good year. For the 12 months ended on March 31, his Value Fund and Partners’ Value Fund returned more than 18%, and the more concentrated Hickory Fund 16.6%. For reference, S&P500 gained 11.8% in the same period. Over the past 20 years, his funds outperformed S&P500 by more than 3% per year. These are some of his commentaries on his recent buys and sells.
Washington Mutual (WM) -- Sold
We first bought Countrywide Financial and Washington Mutual (WaMu) in the early 1990’s. Countrywide has gained market share through internal growth and very efficient operations. Washington Mutual grew through acquisitions, and while it was not as strong as Countrywide from an operating perspective, it grew steadily and treated shareholders well with a combination of generous dividends and stock buybacks. Both have been very good investments for us. We sold our WaMu in the first quarter of (calendar) 2007 because of its exposure to subprime and Alt-A (what some refer to as "the mysterious middle ground between subprime and prime") and because we had less confidence in management’s ability to successfully cope with a crisis in the mortgage industry.
UPS (UPS) -- Buy
UPS is another wonderful business that we have admired for a long time. UPS dominates the U.S. ground parcel market and has a growing global transportation and logistics network that would be nearly impossible for a new entrant to replicate. The company continues to invest in that network (at high rates of return) to help cement its competitive advantage. The stock has declined lately due to a temporary slowdown in earnings, and while not quite cheap enough to take a full position, we have bought a modest number of shares and are hopeful that near-term economic weakness may give us the opportunity to buy more.
TD Ameritrade (AMTD) -- Buy
TD Ameritrade is a leading online discount brokerage firm based in Omaha. Their recent merger with TD Waterhouse helps diversify their business, adds meaningful scale, and provides the opportunity for significant cost savings in consolidation. We believe the stock is very cheap based on post-merger earnings power.
Dell (DELL) -- Buy
Dell is a direct marketer of computers and other electronic equipment that we have discussed in previous letters. Our bet is that Dell’s self-inflicted problems are fixable and that its highly efficient business model is not broken.
Apollo (APOL) -- Buy
Apollo is a leader in for-profit higher education. Apollo’s (and its peers’) earnings growth rate has slowed, but it still generates a growing stream of free cash flow which it can use for expansion and share buybacks. We believe that Apollo sells at a discount to its private market value. We would be happy to own it for many years and to participate in the growth in the value of the business, but the company might also find its way into a private equity portfolio at a healthy premium to its current price.
Mohawk (MHK) and USG (USG) -- Buy
Mohawk and USG (formerly U.S. Gypsum, when companies had names that meant something) are building materials companies that hold dominant positions in their industries (flooring and wallboard, respectively). Both are diversified among new home, remodel, and commercial construction markets, but are clearly cyclical businesses. Their stocks are depressed because of the current slowdown in residential construction and fears of a recession that would affect commercial construction. Both have demonstrated the ability to earn high returns and increase market share over the course of a business cycle.
American Express (AXP) -- Buy
American Express returned to our portfolios this year. Amex is a great business with a dominant payments franchise, a wonderful consumer brand, and an entrenched competitive position. The business earns over 30% on equity, has high-return reinvestment opportunities and returns substantial amounts of cash to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
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