After only a few days, we came to the conclusion that we could have saved a lot of our clients money

"After only a few days, we came to the conclusion that we could have saved a lot of our clients money if we used these methods.
Ron Boer, Managing Director, Asset Management, The Netherlands

THE BUFFET REPORT

If you want to be among the few investors in being able to implement these simple commonsense Buffett-style criteria If youre tired of chasing marginal stocks that risk your capital and confused by all the conflicting reports from the media and investment companies If youve just plain had enough of stock market movements controlling your life

IN THIS REPORT YOU WILL DISCOVER

THE BUFFETT CRITERIA FOR GREAT COMPANIES. HOW YOU CAN CUT PAINSTAKING RESEARCH DOWN FROM MONTHS TO JUST MINUTES.

INDEPENDENTLY AUDITED PERFORMANCE FIGURES OF MY OWN PORTFOLIO SHOWING HOW IT RETURNED AN AVERAGE OF 19.45% PER YEAR COMPARED TO 2.82% PER YEAR FOR THE S&P 500 BETWEEN JUNE 1997 AND NOVEMBER 2003.1

HOW A STUDY BY ED KELLY OF TRINITY COLLEGE, IRELAND, REVEALED A 10-YEAR AVERAGE RETURN OF 17.3% PER YEAR COMPARED WITH 10.22% PER YEAR FOR THE S&P 500 OVER THE SAME PERIOD.
HOW THIS PORTFOLIO TOOK LESS THAN 90 SECONDS TO OBTAIN USING MY SYSTEM, AND HOW, ONCE PURCHASED, NO MORE TRANSACTIONS WERE CARRIED OUT FOR THE NEXT TEN YEARS.

HOW INVESTORS AROUND THE WORLD ARE DISCOVERING MY SIMPLE TOOLS THAT ARE MAKING BUFFET-STYLE INVESTING COMPLETELY STRAIGHTFORWARD. THE ULTIMATE ADVICE FILTER TO GIVE YOU JUST THE VERY BEST IDEAS AND ELIMINATE THE GLITTER STOCKS SO OFTEN PROMOTED BY THE MEDIA. HOW TO IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES SO CLEARLY AND CONVINCINGLY THAT YOULL BE CONFIDENT AND COMFORTABLE WITH EVERY INVESTMENT DECISION YOU MAKE.

SECRET #1: INVEST

IN

QUALITY BUSINESS, NOT STOCK SYMBOL

F OR MOST PEOPLE, INVESTING IN A STOCK IS LITTLE MORE THAN WATCHING THE

TRAIL LEFT BY THE STOCK SYMBOL AS ITS PRICE WANDERS ALONG SOME DRUNKEN PATH. THEY KNOW THAT THE SYMBOL IS ASSOCIATED WITH A COMPANY WHILE NOT BEING TOO SURE WHAT IS EXPECTED OF THIS COMPANY TO ENSURE THAT ITS SHARE PRICE WILL RISE. IT IS A CASE OF LETS SIT BACK AND HOPE FOR THE BEST.

THEN THERE ARE OTHERS WHO DELIBERATELY DO NOT WANT TO KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE ACTIVITIES OF THE COMPANY. THEY WANT TO STUDY THE PURE
MOVEMENT OF THE STOCK PRICE WITH THE BELIEF THAT THEY CAN USE THIS INFORMATION TO MAKE FORECASTS ABOUT THE FUTURE MOVEMENTS OF THE PRICE. WARREN BUFFETT REFERS TO THIS AS TRYING TO PLAY BRIDGE WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE CARDS.

IT JUST MAKES NO SENSE TO IGNORE THE FACT THAT THE STOCK SYMBOL IS ATTACHED TO A COMPANY. AND IT MAKES NO SENSE NOT TO APPLY SOUND BUSINESS PRINCIPLES TO ANALYZE THESE COMPANIES. THE MORE WE KNOW ABOUT THE COMPANY, THEN THE MORE CONFIDENT WE CAN BE ABOUT THE PRICE OF THE STOCK. NOT ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS, BUT OVER TIME.

WHEN I BUY A STOCK, WARREN BUFFETT SAID, I THINK OF IT IN TERMS OF BUYING A WHOLE COMPANY, JUST AS IF I WERE BUYING A STORE DOWN THE STREET. IF YOU WERE BUYING A STORE YOU WOULD WANT TO KNOW ALL ABOUT IT. WHAT WERE ITS PRODUCTS? HOW CONSISTENT ARE THE SALES? DO THEY KEEP TRYING NEW PRODUCTS OR DO THEIR PRODUCTS STAY FAIRLY CONSTANT? WHAT COMPETITORS DOES THE STORE HAVE AND WHAT DISTINGUISHES IT FROM THEM? WHAT WOULD BE THE MOST WORRYING THING ABOUT OWNING SUCH A STORE? THIS LEADS TO THE IDEA OF LOOKING FOR COMPANIES THAT HAVE A STRONG AND DURABLE ECONOMIC MOAT. JUST AS CASTLES HAVE MOATS TO PROTECT THEM FROM INVADERS, SO COMPANIES CAN HAVE ECONOMIC MOATS TO PROTECT THEM FROM CHALLENGES OF COMPETITORS AND CHANGES IN CONSUMER PREFERENCES. THE MOAT CAN BE MADE UP OF ATTRIBUTES SUCH AS BRAND NAME, GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OR PATENTS AND LICENCES. ALL THESE PRINCIPLES ABOUT PURCHASING BUSINESSES ARE EQUALLY APPLICABLE TO PURCHASING SHARES. IT BECOMES ONE OF THE MOST ENJOYABLE PARTS OF INVESTING TO LOOK INTO THE BUSINESS ASPECTS OF ANY COMPANY THAT YOU ARE CONSIDERING ADDING TO YOUR PORTFOLIO.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

THERE ARE THREE KEY WAYS THAT WE HELP PEOPLE WITH CONSCIOUS INVESTOR TO IMPLEMENT BUFFETTS METHOD OF THINKING IN TERMS OF BUYING THE WHOLE COMPANY. FOR A START WE PROVIDE A WATCH LIST OF QUALITY COMPANIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NORTH AMERICA WITH ANALYSES OF THEIR BUSINESSES AND CHECK LISTS OF THEIR FEATURES INCLUDING THEIR ECONOMIC MOATS. SECONDLY, WE ALSO HAVE A MEMBERS FORUM WHERE PEOPLE DISCUSS THE ATTRIBUTES OF DIFFERENT COMPANIES. THIRDLY, WE PROVIDE REGULAR TWELVE PAGE ANALYSES OF KEY COMPANIES IN AUSTRALIA AND NORTH AMERICA.

CONSCIOUS INVESTOR ALSO PROVIDES THE ABILITY TO SCAN THOUSANDS OF

COMPANIES TO LOCATE THOSE WITH SUPERIOR FINANCIAL CHARACTERISTICS AS DESCRIBED BY WARREN BUFFETT.

SECRET #2: DONT INVEST FOR TEN MINUTES IF YOURE NOT

PREPARED TO INVEST FOR TEN YEARS
WHEN WE LOOK AT THE SHARE PRICE OF A COMPANY WE USUALLY SEE A WILDLY
FLUCTUATING GRAPH WITH MIGHTY HILLS AND PLUNGING CHASMS. FOR EXAMPLE, ON THE RIGHT IS THE GRAPH OF THE DAILY CLOSING PRICES OF A COMPANY OVER TEN YEARS. IT WOULD BE A BRAVE PERSON WHO COULD LOOK AT THIS GRAPH AND SAY WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN IN THE NEXT 24 HOURS, LET ALONE THE NEXT 5 TO 10 YEARS. YET THIS IS A TYPICAL GRAPH OF THE PRICES OF A LISTED COMPANY.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THIS GRAPH? BECAUSE IT IS GROWING SO CONSISTENTLY WE

WOULD HAVE A LOT MORE CONFIDENCE IN MAKING FORECASTS OF WHAT WAS GOING TO TAKE PLACE IN THE FUTURE.

THIS GRAPH IS OF THE EARNINGS PER SHARE OF A COMPANY. IF YOU WERE BUYING A COMPANY, THIS IS JUST WHAT YOU WOULD WANT A COMPANY WHOSE EARNINGS AND SALES GO UP LIKE CLOCKWORK BY 15 OR 20 PERCENT OR MORE EACH YEAR. IT IS NO DIFFERENT WHEN YOU INVEST IN COMPANIES VIA THE STOCK MARKET.

IN FACT, THE ABOVE TWO GRAPHS OF THE SAME COMPANY, ARB CORPORATION. THIS IS AN AUSTRALIAN COMPANY THAT MANUFACTURES AND SUPPLIES EQUIPMENT FOR OFF-ROAD AND FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLES AROUND THE WORLD. THE FIRST CHART
DEPICTS THE CLOSING PRICES WHILE THE SECOND CHART DISPLAYS THE EARNINGS PER SHARE OVER THE SAME PERIOD.

WHEN WE PUT THE TWO CHARTS TOGETHER, WE SEE HOW THEY TRACK EACH OTHER. SOMETIMES THE PRICE MOVES AHEAD OF THE EARNINGS PER SHARE AND SOMETIMES IT IS THE OTHER WAY AROUND. BUT OVER TIME THEY MOVE TOGETHER CLEARLY IT IS AN ADVANTAGE TO BE ABLE TO FIND COMPANIES WITH SUCH STEADY AND STRONG GROWTH IN EARNINGS. WHEN WE LOCATE SUCH COMPANIES, WE ARE WELL ON THE WAY TO FINDING QUALITY INVESTMENTS. WHEN WE LOCATE SUCH COMPANIES, WE ARE WELL ON THE WAY TO FINDING QUALITY INVESTMENTS. IN THE CASE OF ARB, A SIMPLE BUY AND HOLD INVESTMENT OF $10,000 IN ARB CORPORATION IN 1994 WOULD NOW BE WORTH OVER $200,000 TEN YEARS LATER. THIS BRINGS US TO WHAT WARREN BUFFETT SAID A FEW YEARS BACK, IF YOU ARENT WILLING TO OWN A STOCK FOR TEN YEARS, DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT OWNING IT FOR TEN MINUTES.

HE CONTINUED, PUT TOGETHER A PORTFOLIO OF COMPANIES WHOSE AGGREGATE EARNINGS MARCH UPWARDS OVER THE YEARS, AND SO WILL THE PORTFOLIOS MARKET VALUE.
IN OTHER WORDS, AS INVESTORS WE FOCUS ON THE MEDIUM TO LONG TERM BUSINESS CHARACTERISTICS OF COMPANIES. IT IS THESE THAT DRIVE THE SHARE PRICE. FOCUSING ON THE SHORT-TERM ASPECTS OF A COMPANY INCLUDING BOTH BUSINESS AND PRICE FLUCTUATIONS IS FOOLISH AS BUFFETT HAS SAID. MOST OF OUR LARGE STOCK POSITIONS ARE GOING TO BE HELD FOR MANY YEARS, AND THE SCORECARD ON
OUR INVESTMENT DECISIONS WILL BE PROVIDED BY BUSINESS RESULTS OVER THAT PERIOD, NOT BY PRICES ON ANY GIVEN DAY.

EVEN THOUGH WE FOCUS ON THE LONG-TERM, THE INVESTMENT IS EVEN MORE PROFITABLE IF WE PURCHASE THE STOCK DURING ONE OF ITS DROPS. BUFFETT HAS SAID THAT EVEN FOR THE BEST OF COMPANIES, YOU CAN STILL PAY TOO MUCH.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

THERE ARE TWO KEY FEATURES OF THE GROWTH IN SALES AND EARNINGS: THE RATE OF GROWTH AND THE STABILITY OF THE GROWTH. CONSCIOUS INVESTOR PROVIDES PROPRIETARY TOOLS TO MEASURE BOTH OF THESE FOR THOUSANDS OF COMPANIES. IN A MATTER OF SECONDS YOU CAN HONE IN ON COMPANIES WITH THE DESIRABLE FEATURES OF HIGH AND STABLE GROWTH. WHEN YOU PUT TOGETHER A PORTFOLIO OF SUCH COMPANIES, THEN YOUR GROWTH IN WEALTH FOLLOWS AUTOMATICALLY. BUT THERE IS MORE. A SECOND FEATURE OF CONSCIOUS INVESTOR IS A
PROPRIETARY TOOL TO HELP LOCATE THOSE SPECIAL BUYING OPPORTUNITIES WHEN THERE IS A TEMPORARY DROP IN THE PRICE EVEN WHILE SALES AND EARNINGS ARE MOVING AHEAD. ANOTHER HIGH-PERFORMANCE OUTCOME FROM USING THESE TOOLS IN CONSCIOUS INVESTOR IS THAT YOU CAN MAKE FORECASTS OF EARNINGS WITH FIVE TIMES THE ACCURACY OF ANALYSTS. IN MY FREE MINI REPORT EARNINGS FORECASTS MADE EASY, YOULL LEARN HOW EASY IT IS FOR YOU TO BE YOUR OWN BEST ANALYST.

EVEN THOUGH BUFFETTS AIM IS TO HOLD SHARES FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE, WHEN THE PROFIT IS THERE, AND THE SHARE PRICE HAS OUTPACED THE VALUE OF THE UNDERLYING BUSINESS, THEN HE SOMETIMES TAKES IT.

SECRET #3: SCAN THOUSANDS OF STOCKS LOOKING FOR SCREAMING

BARGAINS
O NLY A HANDFUL OF OUTSIDERS HAVE BEEN PERMITTED TO ENTER THE INNER SANCTUM OF THE BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY OFFICES IN KIEWIT PLAZA, OMAHA. WHEN CHRIS STAVROU, THE FOUNDER OF THE NEW YORK ASSET MANAGEMENT FIRM, STAVROU PARTNERS, VISITED THE OFFICES HE REPORTED SEEING HUNDREDS OF FILE DRAWERS FULL OF REPORTS ON THOUSANDS OF COMPANIES. TWO THINGS STAND OUT. FIRSTLY, BUFFETT SAID THAT THE REPORTS WERE MAINLY ANNUAL AND QUARTERLY REPORTS. IN OTHER WORDS, MATERIAL THAT IS AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE. SECONDLY, HE DECLARES THAT HE DOES NOT USE A COMPUTER. NOT EVEN A CALCULATOR. HE IS ABLE TO DO WITHOUT THESE STANDARD AIDS SINCE, AS MANY PEOPLE HAVE ATTESTED, HE HAS A PRODIGIOUS MEMORY. THERE ARE NUMEROUS EXAMPLES OF HIM
BEING ABLE TO RECALL OBSCURE FACTS ABOUT THE COMPANIES THAT HE HAS INVESTIGATED, AND THEIR COMPETITORS, MANY YEARS LATER. IT SEEMS THAT HE HAS READ, AND MEMORIZED, A HUGE AMOUNT OF THE MATERIAL IN THE FILING CABINETS.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

CONSCIOUS INVESTOR HAS BUILT INTO IT A RANGE OF KEY CRITERIA USED BY WARREN BUFFETT TO MAKE HIS SELECTIONS. EITHER LOOKING AT THE MARKET AS A WHOLE, OR SECTOR BY SECTOR, YOU CAN INSTANTLY SCAN THROUGH TEN YEARS OF CORPORATE DATA ON EVERY AUSTRALIAN STOCK, AROUND 6,000 USA STOCKS AND 3,000 CANADIAN STOCKS TO LOCATE COMPANIES THAT SATISFY THESE CRITERIA AT DIFFERENT LEVELS. IN SECONDS YOU CAN FILTER THOUSANDS OF STOCKS DOWN TO A HANDFUL THAT HAVE THE HALLMARKS OF PROFITABLE BUFFETT INVESTMENTS.

SECRET #4: CALCULATE HOW WELL MANAGEMENT IS USING THE

MONEY THEY HAVE
H OME BUYERS UNDERSTAND ABOUT EQUITY. IT IS THE VALUE OF THE HOME LESS THE AMOUNT OWED TO THE BANK. THE SAME IS TRUE OF A BUSINESS. ITS EQUITY IS THE TOTAL ASSETS MINUS ALL THE LIABILITIES. YOU CAN THINK OF THIS AS THE MONEY LOCKED UP IN THE BUSINESS. IT IS A MEASURE OF HOW MUCH MONEY MANAGEMENT HAS TO RUN THE BUSINESS. ANOTHER MEASURE OF THE MONEY AVAILABLE TO MANAGEMENT IS THE CAPITAL OF THE BUSINESS. THIS IS ITS EQUITY PLUS THE LONG-TERM DEBT OF THE COMPANY. CLEARLY THE SUCCESS OF ANY BUSINESS IS GOING TO DEPEND ON HOW WELL MANAGEMENT USES ITS EQUITY AND ITS CAPITAL. THIS IS COMMONLY MEASURED BY TWO RATIOS CALLED RETURN ON EQUITY AND RETURN ON CAPITAL. PUTTING IT SIMPLY, THESE ARE DEFINED AS THE EARNINGS OF THE COMPANY DIVIDED BY EQUITY AND BY CAPITAL. THEIR ABBREVIATIONS ARE ROE AND ROC.

MANY COMPANIES CONSISTENTLY LOSE MONEY YEAR AFTER YEAR. SO THEY DO NOT EVEN HAVE AN ROE OR ROC. OTHERS HAVE VERY LOW VALUES FOR THESE RATIOS. IN OTHER WORDS, MANAGEMENT IS STRUGGLING TO MAKE A PROFITABLE USE OF WHAT IT HAS. CLEARLY, THESE ARE NOT THE SORT OF COMPANIES THAT WE SHOULD THINK OF AS QUALITY INVESTMENTS. IF MANAGEMENT IS ONLY MAKING A FEW PERCENT ON THE MONEY THAT IT HAS, THEN OVER TIME THIS IS ALL YOU CAN EXPECT TO MAKE IF YOU PURCHASE SHARES IN THE COMPANY. AFTER ALL, MONEY CANT COME FROM NOWHERE. EVERY YEAR, WARREN BUFFETT WRITES IN THE ANNUAL REPORT OF BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY THAT HE IS EAGER TO HEAR ABOUT BUSINESSES THAT, AMONGST OTHER THINGS, ARE EARNING GOOD RETURNS ON EQUITY WHILE EMPLOYING LITTLE OR NO DEBT. THIS MEANS THAT ROE AND ROC ARE ESSENTIALLY THE SAME. IT MAKES SENSE. IF YOU WANT A HEALTHY RETURN ON ANY SHARES THAT YOU PURCHASE, AT THE VERY LEAST YOU NEED TO SELECT COMPANIES WITH MANAGEMENT THAT IS MAKING A HEALTHY RETURN ON THE MONEY THAT THEY HAVE.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

CONSCIOUS INVESTOR SAVES YOU HOURS OF TIME BY INSTANTLY SCREENING
THROUGH THOUSANDS OF COMPANIES ISOLATING THOSE WITH THE SOUND BUSINESS QUALITIES OF HIGH RETURN ON EQUITY, HIGH RETURN ON CAPITAL AND LOW DEBT.

SECRET #5: STAY

AWAY FROM GLITTER STOCKS

T HERE ARE MANY THOUSANDS OF STOCKS TO CHOOSE FROM: IN THE USA OVER 10,000 STOCKS, IN CANADA OVER 3000 AND IN AUSTRALIA OVER 1,500. FACED WITH THESE MASSIVE NUMBERS AND THE ASSOCIATED DELUGE OF INFORMATION, INVESTORS GET DRAWN TO WHAT I CALL GLITTER STOCKS. THESE ARE STOCKS THAT HAVE SOME ATTENTION GRABBING ACTIVITY SUCH AS HIGH TRADING VOLUME, EXTREME MOVEMENTS IN THE PRICE WHETHER UP OR DOWN, OR WHEN THE STOCKS ARE IN THE NEWS. EVEN WITH THE BEST OF INTENTIONS, IT IS HARD TO LOOK AT THESE STOCKS IN A CLEAR AND OBJECTIVE MANNER COMPARED TO THE REMAINING STOCKS. WARREN BUFFETT WAS SO AWARE OF THIS THAT HE MOVED FROM NEW YORK BACK TO HIS HOME TOWN, OMAHA, NEBRASKA. REGARDING THE BENEFITS OF LIVING IN OMAHA, HE SAID, I THINK ITS A SANER EXISTENCE HERE. I USED TO FEEL, WHEN I WORKED BACK IN NEW YORK, THAT THERE WERE MORE STIMULI JUST HITTING ME ALL THE TIME IT MAY LEAD TO CRAZY BEHAVIOR AFTER A WHILE. HE ENDED BY STATING THAT IT IS MUCH EASIER TO THINK IN OMAHA. A RESEARCH STUDY BY BRAD BARBER AND TERRENCE ODEAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DEMONSTRATES VERY CLEARLY THE PENALTY TO BE PAID BY GETTING DRAWN INTO GLITTER STOCKS.

THEY FOUND THAT, ON AVERAGE, INDIVIDUAL INVESTORS TENDED TO INVEST IN GLITTER STOCKS MORE THAN PROFESSIONALS. SECONDLY, THEY FOUND THAT BY DOING THIS THEY UNDERPERFORMED THE MARKET BY ANYTHING FROM AROUND 2.8 PERCENT TO 7.8 PERCENT PER ANNUM.

BUFFETT HAS LONG UNDERSTOOD THIS. FOR EXAMPLE, BACK IN 1985 HE SAID, MOST PEOPLE GET INTERESTED IN STOCKS WHEN EVERYONE ELSE IS. THE TIME TO GET INTERESTED IS WHEN NO ONE ELSE IS. YOU CANT BUY WHAT IS POPULAR AND DO WELL.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

FORTUNATELY WITH CONSCIOUS INVESTOR THERE IS NO NEED TO MOVE TO A LOW STIMULUS AREA OR TO STOP READING NEWSPAPERS AND WATCHING TELEVISION. IN
SECONDS YOU CAN SCAN THROUGH THOUSANDS OF STOCKS TO FIND THOSE THAT SATISFY PROVEN OBJECTIVE CRITERIA FOR GREAT COMPANIES SELLING AT PROFITABLE PRICES.

SECRET #6: KNOW WHAT A FAT PITCH IS AND WHAT TO DO WITH IT

W ARREN BUFFETT LIKES TO USE EXAMPLES FROM SPORT TO OUTLINE HIS INVESTMENT IDEAS. HE PARTICULARLY LIKES TO USE BASEBALL WITH REFERENCES TO TED WILLIAMS, THE FORMER RECORD HOLDER FOR THE BOSTON RED SOX. A FEW YEARS AGO BUFFETT SAID WE TRY TO EXERT A TED WILLIAMS KIND OF DISCIPLINE. IN HIS BOOK THE SCIENCE OF HITTING, TED EXPLAINS THAT HE CARVED THE STRIKE ZONE INTO 77 CELLS, EACH THE SIZE OF A BASEBALL. SWINGING ONLY AT BALLS IN HIS BEST CELL, HE KNEW WOULD ALLOW HIM TO BAT .400; REACHING FOR BALLS IN HIS WORST SPOT, THE LOW OUTSIDE CORNER OF THE STRIKE ZONE, WOULD REDUCE HIM TO .230. IN OTHER WORDS, WAITING FOR THE FAT PITCH WOULD MEAN A TRIP TO THE HALL OF FAME; SWINGING INDISCRIMINATELY WOULD MEAN A TICKET TO THE MINORS. WHEN WE APPLY THIS TO INVESTING THE MESSAGE IS CLEAR. WAIT UNTIL EVERYTHING IS IN YOUR FAVOUR. NOTHING MAKES YOU BUY ANY PARTICULAR STOCK AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME. AS INVESTORS WE HAVE THE LUXURY OF WAITING FOR THE FAT PITCH.

BUT THERE ARE PROBLEMS. TO BE ABLE TO DO THIS EFFECTIVELY WE NEED TO MASTER THREE STEPS. BEFORE OUTLINING THESE STEPS, TO KEEP BUFFETTS ANALOGY RUNNING, LETS DESCRIBE WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO DO AS LOOKING FOR HOME-RUN STOCKS. THESE ARE THE STOCKS WITH THE HIGHEST CHANCE OF BEING SUCCESSFUL AND MAKING YOU MONEY YEAR AFTER YEAR.

THE FIRST STEP TO MASTER IS TO BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE A HOME-RUN STOCK. AS WE HAVE SEEN, THEY ARE NOT GLITTER STOCKS THAT HAVE APPEARED ON THE FRONT
COVER OF AN INVESTMENT MAGAZINE OR RECOMMENDED BY A POPULAR SHARE MARKET COMMENTATOR. NOR ARE THEY STOCKS THAT HAVE A TRADER PRICE PATTERN OF BREAKOUTS, DOUBLE BOTTOMS, OR CANDLE-STICK TREND REVERSALS.

THE SECOND IS TO KNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN A HOME-RUN STOCK COMES ALONG. BUFFETT HAS SAID WHEN EVERYTHING MEETS YOUR CRITERIA OF IT BEING A GREAT BUSINESS AT A FAIR PRICE, THEN BUY A MEANINGFUL AMOUNT OF THE STOCK. OF COURCE, THIS MEANS THAT YOU CAN ONLY HOLD A SMALL NUMBER OF COMPANIES IN YOUR PORTFOLIO. THE EXTREME EXPONENT OF ONLY HOLDING A SMALL NUMBER OF STOCKS WAS PHIL FISHER. FOR FISHER, ANYTHING OVER SIX WAS TOO MANY. THE MORE STOCKS YOU HOLD, THE MORE LIKELY YOUR RETURNS WILL BE AVERAGE
AND THE MORE TIME YOU WILL HAVE TO SPEND KEEPING TRACK OF THE STOCKS IN YOUR PORTFOLIO. YOU ALSO ADD CONSIDERABLE RISK BECAUSE YOU CANT STUDY THEM PROPERLY. THE THIRD STEP CONCERNS KNOWLEDGE AND CONFIDENCE. YOU NEED THE KNOWLEDGE TO KNOW APPROXIMATELY HOW OFTEN A HOME RUN STOCK COMES ALONG. YOU WONT MAKE THE INVESTORS HALL OF FAME IF YOUR CRITERIA ARE SET SO HIGH THAT YOU ONLY GET TO SWING EVERY OTHER DECADE. ON

THE OTHER HAND, IF THEY ARE SET TOO LOW THEN, WELL, THEY ARE UNLIKELY TO GIVE YOU THE OUTCOME THAT YOU DESIRE. YOU ALSO NEED TO HAVE THE CONFIDENCE TO WAIT. OUR ASPIRING HALL OF FAMER HAS TO RESIST BEING SUCKERED IN TO SWINGING AT PITCHES THAT DONT MEET THE CRITERIA

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

CONSCIOUS INVESTOR PROVIDES WHAT YOU NEED TO MASTER THE THREE STEPS JUST DESCRIBED. FIRSTLY, IT INSTANTLY SCANS THOUSANDS OF STOCKS TO FIND THOSE THAT MEET CRITERIA FOR THEM TO BE HOME-RUN STOCKS. SECONDLY, BY PROVIDING CLEAR CRITERIA TO BE ABLE TO ANALYZE AND UNDERSTAND STOCKS, YOU WILL NOT BE FORCED INTO LARGE NUMBERS OF STOCKS TO SPREAD THE RISK. AS BUFFETT HAS SAID, RISK COMES FROM NOT KNOWING WHAT YOU ARE DOING. THIRDLY, THE CRITERIA IN CONSCIOUS INVESTOR ARE BASED ON THE WISDOM OF WARREN BUFFETT COMBINED WITH HUNDREDS OF HOURS OF ANALYSIS FOLLOWED BY EQUAL AMOUNTS OF TESTING AND BACKTESTING. WITH CONSCIOUS INVESTOR YOU
GET THE KNOWLEDGE AND THE CONFIDENCE TO BE ABLE TO JUDGE JUST WHAT CRITERIA YOU SHOULD SET TO PUT TOGETHER A PORTFOLIO OF HOME-RUN STOCKS.

SECRET #7: CALCULATE HOW MUCH MONEY YOU WILL MAKE, NOT
WHETHER THE STOCK IS UNDERVALUED OR OVERVALUED ACCORDING TO SOME ACADEMIC MODEL.
A S AN INVESTOR WHAT IS THE RIGHT QUESTION TO ASK? MOST ASK WHETHER THE STOCK IS UNDERVALUED OR OVERVALUED. THE PROBLEM WITH THIS IS THAT THERE IS NO WAY OF PROPERLY DETERMINING WHETHER A STOCK IS, IN FACT, UNDERVALUED OR OVERVALUED. THERE ARE VARIOUS ACADEMIC MODELS FOR CALCULATING WHAT IS CALLED THE INTRINSIC VALUE OF A STOCK. FROM MY EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE AS A RESEARCH MATHEMATICIAN ALL THESE MODELS, REFERRED TO AS DISCOUNT CASH FLOW MODELS, ARE FATALLY FLAWED. THERE ARE FOUR AREAS THAT BRING THEM DOWN. THEY ARE THEORETICAL, CONTRADICTORY, UNSTABLE AND UNTESTABLE. THESE PROBLEMS ARE A RATHER TECHNICAL TO EXPLAIN FULLY SO I WILL ONLY GIVE THE GENERAL IDEAS BEHIND THEM. JUST BECAUSE SOME THEORETICAL FORMULA
LABELS A STOCK AS UNDERVALUED DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU ARE GOING TO MAKE MONEY FROM IT. FOR EXAMPLE, PERHAPS THE PRICE WILL STAY AT THAT LEVEL. THE MODELS ARE CONTRADICTORY SINCE DIFFERENT VALUES ARE OBTAINED DEPENDING ON WHICH OF THE MANY VARIATIONS OF THE MODELS THAT YOU USE.

THEY ARE UNSTABLE SINCE INSIGNIFICANTLY SMALL CHANGES IN THE INPUT VARIABLES LEAD TO CHANGES OF 100 PERCENT OR MORE IN THE INTRINSIC VALUE. THIS MEANS THAT IN INSTEAD OF THE MODELS BEING OBJECTIVE, THEY CAN LEAD TO ALMOST ANY OUTPUT THAT IS DESIRED. AND FINALLY THE MODELS ARE IMPRACTICAL BECAUSE THEY ARE UNTESTABLE. SOME
OF THE INPUT VARIABLES REQUIRE VERIFICATION OVER AN INFINITE NUMBER OF YEARS. FOR EXAMPLE, FORECASTS OF GROWTH RATES HAVE TO BE MADE OVER NOT JUST FIVE OR TEN YEARS, BUT EXTENDING OUT FOREVER.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

CONSCIOUS INVESTOR HAS PROPRIETARY TOOLS TO ENABLE YOU TO ENABLE YOU TO ACHIEVE THE GOAL OF CALCULATING EXPECTED RETURN. FIRST OF ALL, IT HAS A PROPRIETARY TOOL FOR MEASURING THE PROJECTED PROFIT FROM AN INVESTMENT. THIS IS MEASURED AS A PROJECTED RETURN PER YEAR. SECONDLY, THIS CAN BE DONE UNDER A PRECISELY CONTROLLED MARGIN OF SAFETY. YOU CAN PUT IN YOUR MARGIN OF SAFETY AS A WORST-CASE SCENARIO. THIRDLY, IT HAS ANOTHER PROPRIETARY TOOL FOR SETTING TARGET PRICES SO THAT YOU KNOW PRECISELY WHAT PRICE YOU NEED TO PAY TO GET YOUR DESIRED RETURN. THESE SIMPLE-TO-USE TOOLS REPRESENT A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH IN EVALUATING THE PROFITABILITY OF STOCK INVESTMENTS. NOT ONLY DO THEY ALLOW YOU TO EVALUATE INDIVIDUAL INVESTMENTS BUT, BECAUSE OF THE FOCUS ON RETURN, YOU CAN IMMEDIATELY COMPARE DIFFERENT INVESTMENTS. SIMPLY CHOOSE THE ONE WITH THE HIGHEST RETURN CALCULATION. THESE TOOLS ALSO ALLOW YOU TO KNOW WHEN TO SELL BY CHECKING WHETHER A
NEW STOCK HAS A HIGHER RETURN CALCULATION THAT ONE THAT YOU MAY BE HOLDING.

SECRET #8: REMOVE THE WEEDS AND WATER THE FLOWERS

NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND
F OR MANY IT IS WORSE THAN HAVING A TOOTH PULLED TO SELL A STOCK FOR A PRICE LOWER THAN WHAT THEY PAID FOR IT. IF YOU BUY A STOCK FOR $20 AND IT DROPS TO $10, SO LONG AS YOU DONT SELL, THEN IT CAN BE REFERRED TO AS AN UNREALIZED LOSS. IN THIS CASE YOU CAN SAY TO YOUR SPOUSE, DONT WORRY, DEAR. ITS GOING TO COME BACK. SIMILARLY, MANY CANT WAIT TO SELL AS SOON AS THEY CAN SEE DAYLIGHT BETWEEN THE PURCHASE PRICE AND THE CURRENT PRICE. IF THE PRICE HAS GONE UP BE A FEW DOLLARS, THEY WANT TO SELL AND LOCK IN THE PROFIT. PETER LYNCH AND LATER WARREN BUFFETT REFERRED TO THIS AS WATERING THE WEEDS AND PULLING UP THE FLOWERS. THEY ARE EXAMPLES OF WHAT I CALL INVESTOR DISEASES. THE DISEASE OF HOLDING ON TO YOUR LOSERS I CALL GETEVENITIS. THE DISEASE OF SELLING WINNERS I CALL CONSOLIDATUS PROFITUS. JUST HOW WIDE-SPREAD THESE DISEASES ARE FOLLOWS FROM A LARGE-SCALE STUDY CARRIED OUT BY TERRANCE ODEAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IN DAVIS. HIS STUDY ALSO SHOWED JUST HOW EXPENSIVE THEY ARE, BEING PAID FOR IN INVESTORS PROFITS

REPORTING IN THE JOURNAL OF FINANCE, 1998, HE FOUND THAT PEOPLE TENDED TO TRADE OUT OF WINNERS INTO STOCKS THAT PERFORMED LESS WELL. IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION, THE STUDY SHOWED THAT THE LOSERS IN THEIR PORTFOLIO TENDED TO CONTINUE TO UNDERPERFORM. IT WAS REALLY THE CASE THAT ONCE A LOSER, ALWAYS A LOSER . OVERALL HE FOUND THAT PEOPLE WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER TO SELL THEIR LOSERS AND KEEP THEIR WINNERS. INSTEAD, THEY DID THE OPPOSITE, NAMELY KEEP THEIR
LOSERS AND SELL THEIR WINNERS

. SUPPOSE TWO SIMPLE CHANGES WERE MADE: THE INVESTORS SOLD THEIR LOSERS AND HELD ON TO THEIR WINNERS. ON AVERAGE, THE STUDY SHOWED THAT THEIR
AVERAGE ANNUAL PERFORMANCE WOULD HAVE GONE UP BY ALMOST FIVE PERCENT PER YEAR.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO STRATEGIES IS EVEN MORE MARKED WHEN TAXES ARE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. WHEN YOU CLAIM A LOSS YOU ARE GETTING A TAX
REBATE AND SO YOU WANT THIS AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE . IN CONTRAST, WITH A PROFIT YOU ARE PAYING TAX SO YOU WANT TO DELAY THIS AS LONG AS POSSIBLE. BUT, AS WE JUST LEARNED, THE AVERAGE INVESTOR TENDS TO TAKE PROFITS EARLY AND LOSSES LATE ENDING UP ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE TAXMAN.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

MY SYSTEM CONSCIOUS INVESTOR HAS PROPRIETARY TOOLS THAT READILY SOLVE THE PROBLEM JUST DESCRIBED. IT ENABLES YOU TO CALCULATE JUST WHAT RETURN YOU CAN EXPECT UNDER YOUR CHOSEN MARGIN OF SAFETY, IT BECOMES VERY EASY TO COMPARE INVESTMENTS. A TYPICAL CASE MIGHT BE THAT UNDER A BEST CASE SCENARIO A STOCK THAT YOU HOLD WILL GIVE A PROFIT OF 8 PERCENT PER YEAR OVER THE NEXT 5 YEARS
WHEREAS UNDER A WORST CASE SCENARIO ANOTHER STOCK WOULD HAVE A RETURN OF 12 PERCENT. HENCE IT BECOMES A STRAIGHTFORWARD DECISION TO TAKE YOUR MONEY OUT OF THE FIRST STOCK AND PUT IT INTO THE SECOND.

SECRET #9: BECOME A CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

T HE FAMOUS GRAPHIC ARTIST M.C. ESCHER SAID THAT MOST OF THE TIME WE ARE MEEKLY SLEEPWALKING ON A TREADMILL. IN OTHER WORDS WE ARE ACTING IN AN UNCONSCIOUS WAY AND MAKING LITTLE PROGRESS. THIS CERTAINLY APPLIES TO INVESTING. MOST OF THE TIME DECISIONS ARE MADE BASED ON EITHER HOPE AND WISHFUL THINKING OR ON ABSTRACT ACADEMIC THEORIES. FORTUNATELY INVESTING IS AN AREA THAT RESPONDS WELL TO BECOMING MORE CONSCIOUS OF WHAT WE ARE DOING AND WHY. RISK COMES FROM NOT KNOWING WHAT YOU ARE DOING, BUFFETT SAID. THE WHOLE DIRECTION OF CONSCIOUS INVESTOR IS TO PLACE YOUR INVESTING, AND HENCE YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE, ON A FIRM BASIS OF SENSIBLE AND KNOWLEDGEABLE INVESTING. YET THERE IS ANOTHER PART OF BEING A CONSCIOUS INVESTOR AND THIS IS TO
INVEST IN COMPANIES WITH PRODUCTS AND SERVICES THAT YOU SUPPORT AND BELIEVE IN. WHEN YOU BECOME CONSCIOUS OF WHY YOU WANT TO INVEST IN A PARTICULAR COMPANY, THEN RISK CAN BE SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED. INVESTING THIS WAY HELPS TO ELIMINATE MANY OF THE UNKNOWNS WHETHER PSYCHOLOGICAL, EMOTIONAL OR MATERIAL.

AS THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN TO AN ANNUAL MEETING OF BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY WILL KNOW, BUFFETT GETS GREAT PLEASURE FROM USING AND TALKING ABOUT THE
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OF THE COMPANIES THAT HE INVESTS IN OR OWNS

WHEN YOU DO THIS INVESTING BECOMES EASIER AND MORE FUN. YOU DONT HAVE
THE WORRY OF HAVING YOUR MONEY TIED UP WITH ENTERPRISES THAT YOU KNOW LITTLE ABOUT. ALSO YOU WILL BECOME A MORE ASTUTE INVESTOR SINCE YOU ARE PICKING UP SIGNALS ABOUT THE ECONOMICS OF COMPANIES LONG BEFORE THEY SHOW UP IN ITS FINANCIAL STATEMENTS.

IMPLEMENTATION USING CONSCIOUS INVESTOR

PUTTING IT IN A NUTSHELL, MY INVESTING SYSTEM, CONSCIOUS INVESTOR, PUTS THE CONSCIOUSNESS BACK INTO INVESTING. INSTEAD OF BEING A FOOTBALL KICKED AROUND BY THE CONFUSING CLAIMS BY THE MEDIA AND FINANCIAL COMPANIES, CONSCIOUS INVESTOR WILL HELP PUT YOU BACK IN CONTROL OF YOUR MONEY. YOU BECOME CONSCIOUS OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND WHY. THERE IS SOMETHING MORE. AS BUFFETT SAID, WE ARE INTERESTED IN BIG NUMBERS, BUT NOT TO THE EXCLUSION OF EVERYTHING ELSE. PART OF BEING A CONSCIOUS INVESTOR IS INVESTING IN A WAY THAT IS STRESS-FREE AND ENJOYABLE. WE DO THIS BY INVESTING IN GREAT COMPANIES AND LETTING THEM DO THE HARD WORK EACH YEAR IN BOOSTING THEIR SALES AND EARNINGS. IT IS A PRACTICAL
ILLUSTRATION OF A PHRASE MADE BY POPULAR BY THE MEDITATION TEACHER MAHARISHI MAHESH YOGI, DO LESS AND ACCOMPLISH MORE. WITH CONSCIOUS INVESTOR YOU ACTUALLY HAVE THE TIME TO ENJOY YOUR SUCCESS.

As a program, Conscious Investor is excellent, but as a philosophy, it is even better. It is a living investment philosophy, instead of just a software tool. Bob Sykes, United Kingdom

ITS JUST THE BEGINNING