巴菲特1972年致股东的信（英文版）

以下是 1972 年巴菲特致股东的信英文版全文：

Operating earnings of Berkshire Hathaway during 1972 amounted to a highly satisfactory 19.8% of beginning shareholders’ equity. Our major lines of business all improved significantly, but the most dramatic gain was in insurance underwriting profit. Due to an unusual convergence of favorable factors - lower frequency of auto accidents, moderation in accident severity, and absence of major catastrophes - underwriting profit margins achieved a level far above averages of the past or expectations of the future. We expect a somewhat lower operating earnings figure in 1973, but our diversification moves of recent years have established a significantly higher base of normal earning power for the future.

We gained control of the company in May 1965. Eight years later, our operating earnings in 1972 were $11,116,256, representing a return many - fold higher than would have been produced had we continued to devote our resources exclusively to the textile business. At the end of the 1964 fiscal year, our shareholders’ equity totaled $22,138,753. Since that time, the company has neither issued new shares for cash nor for stock - acquisitions. Instead, we have repurchased shares, reducing the number of shares outstanding by 14%. Book value per share has increased from $19.46 at the end of the 1964 fiscal year to $69.72 at the end of 1972, a compound annual growth rate of approximately 16.5%.

Our three major acquisitions of recent years have all worked out exceptionally well - from both the financial and human standpoints. In all three cases, the founders were major sellers and received significant proceeds in cash - and, in all three cases, the same individuals, Jack Ringwalt, Gene Abegg and Vic Raab, have continued to run the business with undiminished energy and imagination which have resulted in further improvement of the fine records previously established. We will continue to look for logical extensions of our present operations, and also for new operations which will allow us to continue to employ our capital effectively.

As reported last year, our textile operation showed some improvement in 1972. Over the years, Ken Chase and Ralph Rigby have built an excellent sales force which has gained an increasing reputation for service and dependability. We have restructured our manufacturing capabilities to better match our sales ability. Our efforts were rewarded in 1972 by some benefits from the industry recovery. In addition to minimizing capital requirements, inventory has been controlled, shutdown losses have been minimized, and product mix has been improved substantially. While the general level of profitability of the industry will always be the primary factor in determining the level of our textile earnings, we believe that our relative position within the industry has noticeably improved. We expect somewhat better prospects in 1973.

Our exceptional underwriting profits during 1972 in the large traditional area of our insurance business at National Indemnity present a paradox. They served to swell substantially total corporate profits for 1972, but the factors which produced such profits induced exceptional amounts of new competition at what we believe to be a non - compensatory level of rates. Overall, we probably would have retained better prospects for the next five years if profits had not risen so dramatically this year. We predicted in last year’s report the large number of new competitors that would appear, based on the decline in premium volume last year. We believe that industry underwriting profit margins will be substantially narrower in 1973 - 1974, but this in turn may well lead, sooner or later, to a new competitive environment that will allow the type of growth we have historically experienced. Unfortunately, there is a lag between deterioration of underwriting results and tempering of competition. During this period, we expect to continue to have negative volume comparisons in our traditional operation. Our seasoned management, headed by Jack Ringwalt and Phil Liesche, will continue to underwrite to produce a profit, although not at the level of 1972, and base our rates on long - term expectations rather than short - term hopes. Although this approach has meant dips in volume from time to time in the past, it has produced excellent long - term results.

Also as predicted in last year’s report, our reinsurance division experienced many of the same competitive factors in 1972. A multitude of new organizations entered what has historically been a rather small field, and rates were often cut substantially, and we believe unsoundly, particularly in the catastrophe area. The past year turned out to be unusually free of catastrophes and our underwriting experience was good. George Young has built a substantial and profitable reinsurance operation in just a few years. In the longer term we plan to be a very major factor in the reinsurance field, but an immediate expansion of volume is not sensible against a background of deteriorating rates. In our view, underwriting exposures are greater than ever. When the loss potential inherent in such exposures becomes an actuality, repricing will take place which should give us a chance to expand significantly.

In the “home - state” operation, our oldest and largest such company, Cornhusker Casualty Company, operating in Nebraska only, achieved good underwriting results. In the second full year, the home - state marketing appeal has been proven with the attainment of volume on the order of one - third of that achieved by “old - line” giants who have operated in the state for many decades. Our two smaller companies, in Minnesota and Texas, had unsatisfactory loss ratios on very small volume. The home - state managements understand that underwriting profitably is the yardstick of success and that operations can only be expanded significantly when it is clear that such expansion will be profitable. New operations have higher operating expenses, as would be expected in the developmental stage. John Ringwalt has done an excellent job in getting the new operations off the ground and plans to expand into at least one more state in 1973. Although much work remains, the home - state type of operation has long - term potential.

As reported last year, we acquired Home & Auto Insurance Company of Chicago. We were pleased with the acquisition then, and are even more so now. Under the leadership of Vic Raab, the company continued to achieve excellent results in 1972. We expect to enter the Florida (Dade County) and California (Los Angeles) markets in 1973, offering the same type of specialized urban auto insurance that the company has successfully marketed in Cook County. Vic has the ability to handle a much larger operation. We expect Home & Auto to expand significantly in the next few years.

From 1969 through 1971, we were fortunate to experience record high interest rates at the same time we had substantial increases in premium income. Receiving large amounts of investable funds at a time when the investment markets were very favorable, we were able to invest most of these funds in tax - exempt bonds. Our investment income increased from $2,025,201 in 1969 to $6,755,242 in 1972, while our effective tax rate was very low. Our bond portfolio possesses unusually good call protection, and we will benefit for many years from the high average yield of our current portfolio. However, the current weakness in premium growth will substantially slow the growth of investment income in the next few years.

Our bank subsidiary, the Illinois Bank and Trust Company of Rockford, continued to maintain its position of industry leadership in profitability. The net interest margin after taxes was 2.2% in 1972, a particularly significant result when the following adverse factors are considered: (1) 50% of the deposits consisted of...

We are pleased with the performance of all of our operations and look forward to continued progress in the future.

Sincerely,

Warren E. Buffett

Chairman of the Board