Watchlist Weekly: The Best of the Week Ending August 8, 2025

Links and thoughts for the week; plus some Berkshire history.

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In Case You Missed It: Watchlist Investing BRK Q2 Analysis and Valuation

Check out the related thread. We’re discussing who’s in the wings for succession below the CEO spot, BNSF merger speculation, BRK Energy, and more.

Electrification and Mental Models

Charlie Munger would have loved this article. The title drew me in, but I kept reading as I found Nigel Banks using many multidisciplinary mental models to discuss the case for electrification. He’s even aware of Kahneman and Tversky’s work, applying it to his work on studying energy use and the adoption of climate-friendly actions.

Freightwaves article on intermodal outcomes

Some thoughts on how the intermodal business might shake out with the UP/NS and possible BNSF/CSX mergers.

Pollen Capital - Demonstrating the power of a short watchlist

I hadn’t heard of Pollen Capital until coming across this tweet. The firm focuses its attention on 160 companies and has generated an impressive return over three decades.

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This week in Berkshire History

Lots of history this week!

• August 7, 2003: Berkshire acquires Clayton Homes for $1.7 billion. Clayton earned $1.9 billion pre-tax in 2024.

• August 7, 1998: Berkshire acquires Executive Jet Aviation (later changed to NetJets).

• August 8, 2000: U.S. Investment Corporation or USIC, parent of U.S. Liability, was acquired.

• August 8, 2005: The Public Utility Holding Company Act (PUCHA) repealed.

• August 8, 2019: Berkshire invests $10 billion in an 8% preferred stock deal with Occidental Petroleum to assist it in financing the acquisition of Anadarko.

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That’s it for this week. Hit reply and let me know what you think. What have you been reading that’s worth sharing? Let me know in the comments.

Stay Rational!

Adam

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