By Matt Phillips<\/p>\n
Download the 2009 Warren Buffett Letter & 2009 Annual Report to Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Charlie Munger \u2014 Berkshire vice chair and Warren Buffett\u2019s longtime partner \u2014 knows a good thing when he sees it.<\/p>\n It was Munger who first learned of an obscure Chinese maker of batteries and automobiles called BYD Inc., several years ago and championed an investment in the firm. \u201cBYD was Charlie\u2019s idea,\u201d Buffett told the Journal in a story back in May. \u201cWhen he encounters genius and sees it operating in a practical way, he gets blown away.\u201d<\/p>\n Judging by the return Berkshire has seen so far on BYD, Munger might not merely be encountering genius. He might be one. In 2008, Berkshire decided to invest $232 million for a 10% stake in BYD. In his shareholder letter, Buffett reports that it now values that 10% stake at $1.99 billion, putting the value of that investment above other better-known Berkshire common stock holdings such as Johnson & Johnson, ConocoPhillips and U.S. Bancorp. The largest common stock holding, according to Berkshire\u2019s value, remains Coca-Cola \u2014 which also was the biggest last year \u2014 valued at $11.40 billion.<\/p>\n More broadly, a slight change in language in Buffett\u2019s letter sheds a little light on how much the value of his common stock portfolio has expanded this year. Last year he ranked the top investments carried on his balance sheet that had a year-end value of more than $500 million. This year investments had to have a year-end value of more than $1 billion to make the cut.<\/p>\n Share Investor Links<\/span><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n Share Investor Blog<\/a> – Stockmarket & Business commentary
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