The Weeks Top Stories at Value Investing News

Geoff Gannon writes this blog post in response to Barron’s “Sell Buffett” cover story. The post looks at a fair value for Berkshire (BRK.A) shares and finds that there is currently no real “Buffett premium” baked into the stock price. In fact, if Buffett gives Berkshire another 9 years, Berkshire may end up being a bit undervalued at the latest price of $143,000 per “A” share.

Two months ago in my Financial Times column, I listed some of the things I have learnt about the stock market over the years. I likened the market to a game of online poker, with anonymous opponents and continuously evolving probabilities. I received some good reader feedback, so this month I’ve decided to revisit the topic. Here are a few more things I’ve learnt about the stock market.

Whitney Tilson and Glenn Tongue, co-portfolio managers of T2 Partners, presented on November 29, 2007 at the 3rd Annual New York Value Investing Congress to a standing- room-only crowd at Rose Hall in the Time Warner Center. This link will take you to their presentation, which also argues that Berkshire Hathaway is somewhat undervalued but offers an immense margin of safety.

Legg Mason Value has been a stinker the past two years. But Bill Miller is a gifted manager. Bet on him to rebound. By Steven Goldberg

First Eagle is reopening two of their funds and several other value funds have recently been reopened. Could this be a sign that managers are find more value opportunities?

“Forget about the upcoming presidential primaries; it’s already election night at Nautilus (NLS) – and the early exit polls favor the challenger.” Geoff Gannon reports on the proxy fight between activist hedge fund Sherborne investors and the incumbent board of Bowflex maker Nautilus.

The Peridot Capitalist chimes in on the Berkshire Hathaway valuation debate and actually thinks the shares are even more overvalued than Barron’s. The debate rages on…

Here is the Barron’s story that everyone is talking about today regarding Berkshire Hathaway’s value. Access to this story should now be free.

Jeff Matthews responds to Barron’s recent “Sell Buffett” cover story. He focuses on issues other than valuation, and points out that Berkshire is not harder to understand than many other businesses, despite its complexity. Most importantly, Buffett actually does communicate extensively with shareholders – he just doesn’t do quarterly conference calls for Wall Street analysts.

Berkshire Hathaway shares are under a lot of pressure today after a cover story in Barron’s over the weekend recommended, “Sell Buffett: Sorry, Warren, Your Stock’s Too Pricey.” (The piece itself is still behind a paid subscription firewall, but will become free content this afternoon.)