Warren Buffett has been incredibly successful and he’s extremely wealthy. Warren Buffett’s wealth jumped by around $12.7 billion in 2013 alone.
But how much is $12.7 billion, anyway?
And how good an investor is Warren Buffett, really? We’ve put together some facts that really put him in perspective.
1. 99% of Buffett’s wealth was earned after his 50th birthday.
Buffett made $62.7 billion of his $63.3 billion networth after his 50th birthday.
$60 billion — nearly 95% — is from after his 60th birthday.
Talk about long-term investment strategies.
Source: Fool
2. Berkshire’s Book Value beat the S&P 500 in 43 out of 44 years on a 5-year rolling average basis
From 2008 to 2013, the S&P 500 returned 128%, while Berkshire (based on book value per Class A share) returned 80%.
Source: Berkshire Hathaway, Business Insider
3. Among legends, Buffett has the longest track record for beating the market.
That chart shows investors compared to the S&P 500 over time. You can see the longevity of his outperformance is greater than those of other great investors.
Source: Business Insider
4. Buffett’s net worth of $63.3 billion is greater than the combined 2013 GDP’s of Ghana and Cambodia.
Ghanas 2013 GDP was estimated to be $47,928,717,949.
Cambodias 2013 GDP was estimated to be $15,249,684,397.
Warren Buffetts wealth currently makes him the 3rd richest man.
Source: Forbes
5. In 2013, Buffett made on average $37 million per day — that’s more than what Jennifer Lawrence made the entire year.
According to Forbes, Jennifer Lawrence is the second highest paid actress in 2013 — and she is estimated to have made $34 million that year.
Warren Buffett made $37 million per day in 2013.
Source: MarketWatch
6. You could pay the college tuition of 6 NYU students with what Warren Buffett made in a single hour in 2013.
NYU is the most expensive university in the United States — four years of tuition costs $247,908.
Buffett made $1.5 million per hour in 2013.
Source: CNBC
7. Buffett made his first stock purchase the same year that Pearl Harbor was bombed.
Warren Buffetts first stock purchase was in 1941 — he bought 3 preferred shares for himself and three for his sister at $38. The stock dropped nearly 30%, and when it finally got back up to $40 Buffett sold. A few months later, the stock soared to $200.
Pearl Harbor was bombed on December 7, 1941.
Source: Old School Value
8. Buffett has so far donated enough money in his lifetime to build 4 Apple “Spaceship” Campuses.
Buffett has donated a lifetime total of $20 billion — the second highest amount (following Bill Gates).
The Apple Campus is a $5 billion project.
Source: Forbes
9. You could increase the annual salary of every North Korean living in Pyongyang by 50% if you took Buffett’s donation to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and distributed it evenly to them.
North Koreas capital Pyongyang has a population of 2.843 million. And the average North Korean makes an estimated $1000-2000 per year (so we used the number $1500).
Buffett donated $2.1 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. That means that every person in Pyongyang would hypothetically get $738.65 — an amount that is 49.2% of the annual per capita earnings in North Korea.
Keep in mind, however, that Buffetts donation is in class B shares.
Source: CNBC
10. Buffett is “ready” to double his investment in renewable energy — bringing the total to an amount that could build 46 Burj Al Arab’s.
Buffett already has $15 billion invested in solar and wind energy, and is “ready” to commit another $15 billion — which would bring the grand total up to $30 billion.
Dubai glitzy hotel, the Burj Al Arab, cost $650 million to build.
Source: Bloomberg
11. In 2014, a Singapore man bid $2.2 million for lunch with Warren Buffett. That amount could’ve provided 9,746 students with a calculus textbook.
In case you don have college-aged kids yet, text books are extremely expensive. The one that we used in our calculation costs $225.72.
Source: Omaha.com
12. Berkshire Hathaway’s cash balance is at $50 billion — that’s equal to the entire GDP of South Dakota plus 45 Airbus A318’s.
Berkshire Hathaway currently has over $50 billion in cash.
The GDP of South Dakota in 2013 was $46.732 billion.
An Airbus A318 costs $71.9 million.
Source: Bloomberg News
13. If you invested $1000 in Berkshire Hathaway in 1970, you’d have $4.86 million today.
Berkshire Hathaway closed at $41 at the end of 1970.
On August 12, 2014, Berskshire Hathaway closed at $199,562.00.
Thats a 486,636.59% change. Youd have $4.866 million today.
Source: Yahoo Finance
14. If you invested $1000 in Berkshire Hathaway in 1980, you’d have $531,165 today.
Berkshire Hathaway closed at $375 on August 12, 1980.
On August 12, 2014, Berskshire Hathaway closed at $199,562.00.
Thats a 53,116.53% change. Youd have $531,165.30 today.
Source: Yahoo Finance
15. If you invested $1000 in Berkshire Hathaway in 1990, you’d have $28,785 today.
Berkshire Hathaway closed at $6,700 on August 13, 1990.
On August 12, 2014, Berskshire Hathaway closed at $199,562.00.
Thats a 2,878.54% change. Youd have $28,785.40 today.
Source: Yahoo Finance
16. If you invested $1000 in Berkshire Hathaway in 2000, you’d have $2,218 today.
Berkshire Hathaway closed at $62,000 on August 11, 2000.
On August 12, 2014, Berskshire Hathaway closed at $199,562.00.
Thats a 221.87% change. Youd have $2,218.7 today.
Source: Yahoo Finance
17. If you invested $1000 in Berkshire Hathaway the year that Warren Buffett became the majority shareholder, you’d be up to $10.50 million today.
In 1964 – the year that Buffett became a majority shareholder — the stock was valued at $19 per share.
On August 12, 2014, Berskshire Hathaway closed at $199,562.00.
Thats a 1,050,226.32% change — which would be $10.502 million.
Source: Yahoo Finance
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