If you follow Sage of Omaha Warren Buffett, then you know Buffett credits much of the success of Berkshire Hathaway to 91-year-old Charlie Munger his longtime partner and Berkshire vice chairman. The other thing you’ll know is that Buffet and company try diligently to put high business ethics standards at the forefront of their investment thinking. The emphasis may be part of a moral calculus, but Berkshire has claimed over and over that good ethics is simply essential for good long-term business. And as a value investor, that’s what Berkshire wants — businesses that are in it for the long haul.
That’s why Charlie Munger’s recent comments about the drug conglomerate Valeant — comments Bloomberg unhesitatingly calls “bashing Valeant” — are a concern for investors, who’ve seen the stock lose half its value since August. Bloomberg reports that Munger, who has no stake in Valeant, called Valeant “deeply immoral.” Not everyone agrees. Billionaire activist investor William Ackman, an investor in Valeant, last week tried to stop the stock from leaking further by, among other things, comparing it to Berkshire Hathaway.
