The Oracle's Final Lesson: Warren Buffett's Enduring Investment Principles
- Holzberg Wealth Management
- Jun 12
- 6 min read
Updated: 17 minutes ago
HWM Market Recap - June 2025
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Warren Buffett bought his first stock at age 11. Now, at 94, he is stepping down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Between those years, he managed to build one of the world’s most valuable companies and develop a philosophy of investing that has guided generations of individuals and institutions alike.
Buffett's retirement marks the end of an era but not the end of his influence. Rather than mourn his departure, we should celebrate the timeless principles he has consistently championed – principles that remain as relevant today as they were when he started his investment career.
The Buffett Blueprint: Four Principles That Never Go Out of Style
1. Equities Are the Long-Term Winner
Buffett has never wavered in his conviction about stocks. In his most recent shareholder letter, he reiterated:
"Despite what some commentators currently view as an extraordinary cash position at Berkshire, the great majority of your money remains in equities. That preference won't change."
And the results speak for themselves. Even amid recent market volatility, we have just witnessed one of the most dramatic recoveries in market history – a 19% rebound in just 27 trading days that brought us back near all-time highs.
The takeaway? Long-term investors who stay invested in quality companies are consistently rewarded over time.
2. Ignore ALL Market Forecasts
At the 1999 Berkshire meeting, Buffett was characteristically blunt:
"We have no idea whether the market is going to go up today, next week, next month, or next year... I know of no one who has been successful and really made a lot of money predicting the actions of the market itself."
Plenty of investors try to time markets based on headlines. But the truth is, very few get it right, and most miss out on the recovery. We wrote about this in our December newsletter, comparing Wall Street's forecasts to actual outcomes. (If you missed that post, read it here.)
As Morgan Housel writes in The Psychology of Money: "The biggest risk is assuming anyone knows exactly what will happen next and making investment decisions based on that belief."
What matters most? Having a plan you can stick to, regardless of the market’s mood.
3. Volatility Is Your Friend (If You're Patient)
Buffett famously said:
"The beauty of stocks is that they sell at silly prices from time to time. That's how Charlie and I have gotten rich."
This is the heart of his "be greedy when others are fearful" mantra. Current market uncertainty feels unnerving. Despite elevated tariff rates not seen since the 1940s and widespread recession fears, the market has shown remarkable resilience.
While emotionally challenging, market volatility presents opportunities for disciplined investors who stay the course.
Volatility is not the enemy. For long-term investors, it’s the fuel that drives future returns.
4. Time Is the Ultimate Margin of Safety
Buffett’s most famous quote may also be his shortest:
"Our favorite holding period is forever."
This principle recognizes that compounding – what Einstein allegedly called the eighth wonder of the world – requires time to work its magic. Most of compounding's benefits occur many years after your initial investment, which is why your long-term returns depend on two factors: choosing the right assets AND holding them without interruption.
This chart, which shows rolling stock market returns over various time periods, perfectly illustrates this. While short-term results vary widely, longer holding periods consistently tilt the odds in investors' favor.
Why These Lessons Matter Now More Than Ever
We are living through another 'this time is different' moment. Trade tensions, rising interest rates, and fears of a slowdown. It all feels uniquely uncertain. But as our market history shows, we have navigated similarly unique challenges before:
9/11
The 2008 financial crisis
Credit rating downgrades
The COVID-19 pandemic
Each time, markets recovered and moved higher. Each time, investors who stayed the course were rewarded for their patience.
As Housel captures in The Psychology of Money: "Optimism is a belief that the odds of a good outcome are in your favor over time, even though there will be setbacks along the way."
Two fundamental forces explain why markets continue to thrive despite periodic setbacks:
Corporate Innovation and Adaptation: Thousands of companies worldwide continuously create superior products, address emerging challenges, and discover more efficient operations. This ongoing evolution creates real value and drives long-term growth.
The Human Drive for Progress: Even during difficult times, people remain focused on building a better tomorrow. This steady drive to grow, improve, and create has powered decades of extraordinary gains in global wealth and living standards.
The Simple Path Forward
Buffett's retirement does not signal the end of sound investing principles; it reinforces them. These are not just Buffett’s ideas; they’re universal principles echoed by investing greats across generations.
The path forward remains remarkably simple:
Own a diversified portfolio of the world's best companies
Ignore market predictions and media noise
Use volatility as an opportunity, not a threat
Stay the course for the long term
As Jack Bogle, the founder of Vanguard, often said, "Don't just do something, stand there." In a world full of noise (constant financial news and market commentary), sometimes the most radical act is doing nothing at all.
Warren Buffett's greatest gift is not his stock-picking ability – it is showing us that successful investing does not require genius, just discipline, patience, and faith in the enduring power of human progress.
While we will miss the Oracle's annual letters and folksy wisdom, his final lesson may be his most important: the principles that built wealth for nearly a century will continue working long after he is gone. The question is not whether these principles will work in the future – it is whether we will have the discipline to follow them.
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Monthly Changes in Indices
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Monthly Performance By Sector
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Interest Rates: The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will meet later this month for its June meeting.
Inflation: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.1% month-over-month in May, after falling 0.1% in April. Over the last twelve months, CPI increased 2.4%. Core CPI (which excludes food and energy) increased 0.1% in May compared to April and rose 2.8% compared to a year ago.
Housing: According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sales slid 0.5% in April and retreated 2.0% from one year ago. The median existing-home sales price rose 1.8% from April 2024 to $414,000 – the 22nd consecutive month of year-over-year price increases. Sales of new single-family houses rose 10.9% in April from March and rose 3.3% from April 2024. The median sales price of new houses sold in April was $407,200.
Mortgage Rates: As of June 5th, 2025, the weekly average for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.85%, slightly above the 52-week average of 6.69% and down 0.14% from a year ago.
Employment: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Employment Situation Summary, unemployment was unchanged in May at 4.2%. Employment continued to trend up in health care, leisure and hospitality, and social assistance.
Consumer Sentiment: The University of Michigan's Surveys of Consumers was unchanged from April, ending four straight months of declines. Compared to its reading from one year prior, consumer sentiment is down 24.5%. Year-ahead inflation expectations were little changed at 6.6% in May, inching up from to 6.5% in April. Long-run inflation expectations fell back from 4.4% in April to 4.2% in May.
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About the Author
Holzberg Wealth Management is a family-owned and operated financial planning and investment management firm based in Marin County, CA. As your financial advisors, we serve you as a fiduciary and are fee-only, so we never receive commissions of any kind. We help individuals and families like you in the greater San Francisco Bay Area and nationwide with the financial decision-making process to organize, grow, and protect your assets.
** This writing is for informational purposes only. The author and Holzberg Wealth Management do not guarantee or otherwise promise any results that may be obtained from using this report. No reader should make any investment decision without first consulting their financial advisor and conducting their own research and due diligence. These commentaries, analyses, opinions, and recommendations represent the personal and subjective views of the author and do not constitute a recommendation, offer, or solicitation to make any securities transaction. The information provided in this report is obtained from sources that the author believes to be reliable. External links to third parties are being provided for informational purposes only. Holzberg Wealth Management is not affiliated with the third-party websites linked to, unless otherwise explicitly stated, and does not constitute an endorsement or approval by Holzberg Wealth Management of any of the third party’s products, services, or opinions. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Indices are not available for direct investment; therefore, their performance does not reflect the expenses associated with the management of an actual portfolio. Any charts and graphs provided are hypothetical and for illustrative purposes only, are not indicative of any investment, and assume reinvestment of income and no transaction costs or taxes.
