Buffett and ADM

http://www.futureofcapitalism.com/2011/07/buffett-and-adm

Archer Daniels Midland is a member in good standing of the Crony Capitalism Index. The company benefits both from federal subsidies to ethanol and from tariffs on imported ethanol. Its CEO was a guest at President Obama's January 19, 2011 state dinner for President Hu of China and is also a member of the President's Export Council. So it fits that Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett dropped the name of ADM, based in Mr. Obama's home state of Illinois, as the "kind of company we look at" as a potential acquisition.

If Mr. Buffett were actually going to buy ADM for Berkshire, I don't see what he'd gain by touting the stock publicly in advance — it just drives up the price, making the company more expensive to buy. But maybe I am missing something. A cynic would say that some Buffett associates were poised, David Sokol style, to buy ADM for their personal accounts, and now that Mr. Buffett has made it public that ADM is a potential Berkshire target, they can go buy all they want without being accused of "insider trading" by some reporter or regulator's definition.

Other Buffett government plays include BYD, GE, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, BNSF, and MidAmerican.

by Ira Stoll  |  Jul 8, 2011 at 12:32 pm Related Topics:  Energy, General Electric, Goldman Sachs, President Obama, Warren Buffett receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free futureofcapitalism.com mailing list