Homepage
PR Newswire
Letters from Chairman (Ian M. Cumming) and President (Joseph S. Steinberg) of Leucadia National Corporation from 1978 - 2003 can be downloaded from here
For 2004 to 2011 letters can be downloaded directly from Leucadia website : http://www.leucadia.com/
Cream of the crop of the Letters :
What We Do
We tend to be buyers of assets and companies that are troubled or out of favor and as a result are selling substantially below the values which we believe are there. From time to time, we sell parts of these operations when prices available in the market reach what we believe to be advantageous levels. While we are not perfect in executing this strategy, we are proud of our long-term track record. We are not income statement driven and do not run your company with an undue emphasis on either quarterly or annual earnings. We believe we are conservative in our accounting practices and policies and that our balance sheet is conservatively stated.
Rules of the Road
1. Don’t overpay, no matter what the madding crowd is up to.
2. Buy companies that make products and services that people need and want and provide them as cheaply as possible with consistently high quality. Lower cost and higher quality is a relentless and never-ending task.
3. Earnings sheltered by NOLs are more valuable than earnings that are taxed!
4. Compensate employees for performance and expect hard work and honesty in return.
5. Don’t overpay!
About Leucadia National Corporation
The Company is a diversified holding company engaged in a variety of businesses, including telecommunications, healthcare services, banking and lending, manufacturing, real estate activities, winery operations, development of a copper mine and property and casualty reinsurance. The Company concentrates on return on investment and cash flow to build long-term shareholder value, rather than emphasizing volume or market share. Additionally, the Company continuously evaluates the retention and disposition of its existing operations and investigates possible acquisitions of new businesses in order to maximize shareholder value. In identifying possible acquisitions, the Company tends to seek assets and companies that are troubled or out of favor and, as a result, are selling substantially below the values the Company believes to be present.
Shareholders’ equity has grown from a deficit of $7,700,000 at December 31, 1978 (prior to the acquisition of a controlling interest in the Company by the Company’s Chairman and President), to a positive shareholders’ equity of $2,134,200,000 at December 31, 2003, equal to a book value per common share of the Company (a “common share’’) of negative $.11 at December 31, 1978 and $30.13 at December 31, 2003. The December 31, 2003 shareholders’ equity and book value per share amounts have been reduced by the $811,900,000 special cash dividend paid in 1999.
For 2004 to 2011 letters can be downloaded directly from Leucadia website : http://www.leucadia.com/
Cream of the crop of the Letters :
What We Do
We tend to be buyers of assets and companies that are troubled or out of favor and as a result are selling substantially below the values which we believe are there. From time to time, we sell parts of these operations when prices available in the market reach what we believe to be advantageous levels. While we are not perfect in executing this strategy, we are proud of our long-term track record. We are not income statement driven and do not run your company with an undue emphasis on either quarterly or annual earnings. We believe we are conservative in our accounting practices and policies and that our balance sheet is conservatively stated.
Rules of the Road
1. Don’t overpay, no matter what the madding crowd is up to.
2. Buy companies that make products and services that people need and want and provide them as cheaply as possible with consistently high quality. Lower cost and higher quality is a relentless and never-ending task.
3. Earnings sheltered by NOLs are more valuable than earnings that are taxed!
4. Compensate employees for performance and expect hard work and honesty in return.
5. Don’t overpay!
About Leucadia National Corporation
The Company is a diversified holding company engaged in a variety of businesses, including telecommunications, healthcare services, banking and lending, manufacturing, real estate activities, winery operations, development of a copper mine and property and casualty reinsurance. The Company concentrates on return on investment and cash flow to build long-term shareholder value, rather than emphasizing volume or market share. Additionally, the Company continuously evaluates the retention and disposition of its existing operations and investigates possible acquisitions of new businesses in order to maximize shareholder value. In identifying possible acquisitions, the Company tends to seek assets and companies that are troubled or out of favor and, as a result, are selling substantially below the values the Company believes to be present.
Shareholders’ equity has grown from a deficit of $7,700,000 at December 31, 1978 (prior to the acquisition of a controlling interest in the Company by the Company’s Chairman and President), to a positive shareholders’ equity of $2,134,200,000 at December 31, 2003, equal to a book value per common share of the Company (a “common share’’) of negative $.11 at December 31, 1978 and $30.13 at December 31, 2003. The December 31, 2003 shareholders’ equity and book value per share amounts have been reduced by the $811,900,000 special cash dividend paid in 1999.
Specuvestor: Asset - Business - Structure.
