Berkshire Hathaway & Warren Buffet buys Burlington Northern Santa Fe. It was just announced on CNN.

Yea
And Amtrak looses $32 per passenger

day late, dollar short and 2 posts late!

We have been reading about an offer only paperboys----the deal closed today which is what CNN is announcing.

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Originally posted by paperboys:
day late, dollar short and 2 posts late!

Is that comment really necessary!

Rough crowd!

They would kill a stand up comic!

Well, IMHO I think Mr. Buffett made a big mistake. Now you tell me, just where is he going to find a building big enough to house that layout? Rick

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by paperboys:
day late, dollar short and 2 posts late!



Is that comment really necessary!

This same info was posted here yesterday twice and on the Real Trains forum yesterday.

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Originally posted by Dewey Trogdon:
We have been reading about an offer only paperboys----the deal closed today which is what CNN is announcing.

\

It was a done deal on tuesday. Last night the CEO of BNSF was on Nightly business Report.
Suzy asked him if the deal was made to get him as a the future CEO of Berkshire Hathaway when Buffet retires.
Of course he ducked that question.

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Of course he ducked that question.

Don't you mean he sidetracked it?

BTW, has anybody seen the World's Largest Railroad?

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We have been reading about an offer only paperboys----the deal closed today which is what CNN is announcing.

CNN is the least watched of all the "news" channels and there late reporting may well part of their problem. The BNSF deal was a done deal long before it was announced and the closing today is a mere formality. Remember it was announced yesterday, but a whole lot work had to be done before it could be announced.

I wonder if the new owners will bring back Cascade Green or WarBonnets?

Cascade Green ... or Gecko Green.

http://www.herpconbio.org/Volu...k_Greenwald_2009.pdf

As a shareholder in BNSF I don't remember seeing anything in my mail to vote on this nor have I received an offer from Warren Buffet to purchase my shares.So as I see it the deal is not a done deal till all the outstanding shares have been purchased.

A quote from Warren Buffet:

“If you buy a railroad, you can’t move it to China or to India or anyplace else. You are betting on the United States. I can’t think of a surer bet.”

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Originally posted by BNSFFAN:
As a shareholder in BNSF I don't remember seeing anything in my mail to vote on this nor have I received an offer from Warren Buffet to purchase my shares.So as I see it the deal is not a done deal till all the outstanding shares have been purchased.

Only need 51% of the shares to own it. Less if that less gives them the majority of shares on one voting block.

FYI, Berkshire Hathaway was just downgraded from AAA after this acquisition.

At least all of the engines have the correct sound packages installed!

Sorry, I just couldn't help it, LOL!

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Posted November 05, 2009 10:09 AM Hide Post
A quote from Warren Buffet:

“If you buy a railroad, you can’t move it to China or to India or anyplace else. You are betting on the United States. I can’t think of a surer bet.”

Yes, and "CHINA SHIPPING" containers are being transported on the US railroads.

I heard they are planning to increase the width of the PANAMA CANAL for larger ships. Wouldn't that "shipping" also compete with cross country railroads ?

Yes, but the PC route is slower for containers. And even with the larger canal gates there is a backlog of ships to use it. Some company pay a toll bonus to jump to the head of the line. And I don't think some of the bigger ships could call port along some areas of the east coast.

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As a shareholder in BNSF I don't remember seeing anything in my mail to vote on this nor have I received an offer from Warren Buffet to purchase my shares.So as I see it the deal is not a done deal till all the outstanding shares have been purchased.

you will receive a letter giving you the option of selling or converting to BH shares. that will be your only choice. as of now, BNSF, as a corporate enity no longer exists. all stock activity will be reported as BH. No, you probably didn't see any mail to vote. why? BH already owned 22% of BNSF which basically means if a vote was taken on anything-it's kinda like the 900 lb gorilla in the room.

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Originally posted by Traindiesel:
Berkshire Hathaway & Warren Buffet buys Burlington Northern Santa Fe. It was just announced on CNN.

I'll start the false rumor that they are going to rename the BNSF to the BHWB (Berkshire Hathaway Warren Buffet railroad).

QUOTATION OF THE DAY


"This is all happening because my father didn’t buy me a train set as a kid."
WARREN BUFFETT, joking about his decision to buy a railroad, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation.

The way I see it, Warren Buffett never did like the BN acquiring the Santa Fe. Buffett is going to split BNSF into two new railroads. One railroad will be named the “Burlington Northern” and the other the “Santa Fe”.

Frank…..Frank……..FRANK…………WAKE UP YOUR DREAMING AGAIN……….

SUFFERING SUCCOTASH……………all I want is Santa Fe SD70ACe’s

Frank can you do that in black and green?

Warren Buffet could never be called a stupid person. He bought BNSF for a reason. Here is one reason according to a financial expert (Karl Denninger):

"When the global economy truly recovers oil will skyrocket up to or beyond the $150 where it was in late 2008. If the dollar is indeed still "overvalued" and going to 40 as many technicians predict, oil will likely reach $300 a barrel. This will in turn drive gasoline prices north of $6, heating oil will reach $7-8/gallon, and diesel will be commensurate with heating oil.


This will in turn decimate the trucking industry. Trucks will of course remain for terminal-to-door deliveries but for long-haul they will simply be uneconomic. Those who currently are employed in this business will lose their jobs. ( Trains will be the shippers of choice for long haul. )


The middle class will be decimated. Those who live in suburbia, who are primarily middle-class Americans, will find themselves faced with commute costs that are double or more what they pay now. Those in the middle class who live in the Northeast where heating oil is the primary fuel for winter, where natural gas infrastructure does not exist to replace heating oil, will find themselves choosing between heat and food in large numbers."

Yeah, this guy is kind of a downer... but he may have a point about why Buffet bought a railroad...

Chessie,

While I lean toward agreeing with this guy, I would wonder why rails would be immune from fuel prices going through the roof. The rising cost of fuel is going to make them less profitable I would think. They are going to have a hard time passing on the costs to the customer. When this financial mess started, weren't trains sitting idle around the country? I seem to remember many folks talking about seeing that on here.

I agree Buffet is very smart and much more financially savy than I (I hope to be only worth about 1% of his worth when I am his age). I know he is a value investor and I will admit I haven't looked at any train prospectuses lately (ever?), so I don't know what they are forcasting and their PE ratios are. He made a killing with Coke years ago. I am sure he will do so here. I just wonder why rising fuel costs make some industries less profitable, but they are going to make rail lines more valuable?

The railroads are not immune from fuel prices going up. That said though, it is my understanding that some of the Railroads use fuel hedge contract just like the airlines. The fuel hedge commits the railroad to paying a pre-determined price for the diesel fuel purchases in the future.

Regards,
Swafford

Well, lionel should make a warren buffett figure driving a bnsf diesel,all aboard ahahhahha.

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Originally posted by sidehatch:
Well, lionel should make a warren buffett figure driving a bnsf diesel,all aboard ahahhahha.

It should be a set that includes a Mint car!!