Weekly Roundup: July 26, 2024
Berkshire, Banks, Old Dominion, Medifast, Value After Hours
Watchlist Company News
Berkshire/BNSF - BRK’s rail is having a tough go lately. Two derailments on July 20th, one in Minnesota and another in Kansas. (Link) Then, on July 22, a teen tampered with a switch and derailed a train in Lincoln, Nebraska (Link)
Banks - A WSJ article discussed the new trend among some banks to issue synthetic risk transfer securities. I agree with the author’s conclusion that this is all about gaming risk weighting regulations. If they wanted to transfer risks they’d sell the loans. Whenever Wall Street gets “creative” I get suspicious. I envision this blowing up at some point as more “creativity” creeps in and complexity masks the underlying economics/risks. Regulators should step on this kind of thing quickly. (Link)
Old Dominion - ODFL keeps on trucking…Profit increased 10% and the operating margin improved. LTL is in a much better shape currently than its truckload peers. (WSJ Link)
Medifast - An article about the effects on food spending for patients on GLP-1 drugs. Lean proteins increased by 27% while sugary snacks declined by half. h/t
(Link)Other Interesting News / Links
Value After Hours - I hung out with Tobias and Jake for an hour on Tuesday. (Link)
Berkshire is everywhere! It’s easy to forget how many companies Berkshire owns. I bought some electrical components at Home Depot this weekend and was reminded that Halex is a Scott Fetzer Company. Berkshire bought Scott Fetzer in 1986. It’s now a part of the Marmon Group.
Stay rational! —Adam
