Warren Buffett

Lore & Background

Buffett was born in Omaha, Nebraska. The son of U.S. congressman and businessman Howard Buffett, he developed an interest in business and investing during his youth. He entered the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1947 before graduating from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln at 20. He went on to graduate from Columbia Business School, where he molded his investment approach around the concept of value investing pioneered by Benjamin Graham. He attended New York Institute of Finance to focus on his economics background and soon pursued a business career. He then began several business ventures and investment partnerships, including one with Graham. He created Buffett Partnership Ltd. in 1956 and his investment firm eventually acquired textile manufacturer Berkshire Hathaway, applying its name to a diversified holding company. Buffett emerged as the company's chairman and majority shareholder in 1970. In 1978, fellow investor and long-time business associate Charlie Munger joined Buffett as vice-chairman. From 1970 to 2026, Buffett presided as the chairman and largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway, one of America's foremost holding companies and world's leading corporate conglomerates. He has been referred to as the "Oracle" or "Sage" of Omaha by global media as a result of having accumulated a massive fortune derived from his business and investment success. Buffett adheres to the principles of value investing and frugality despite his wealth. Buffett met Chuck Feeney and has pledged to give away 99 percent of his fortune to philanthropic causes; until 2026 his giving was primarily to the Gates Foundation. He founded The Giving Pledge in 2010, with Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates, whereby billionaires pledge to give away at least half of their fortunes.

Reader's Guide

Buffett was born on August 30, 1930, in Omaha, Nebraska, as the second of three children and the only son of Congressman Howard Buffett and his wife, Leila (née Stahl) Buffett. He began his education at Rose Hill Elementary School. In 1942, his father was elected to the first of four terms in the United States Congress, and after moving with his family to Washington, D.C., Warren finished elementary school, attended Alice Deal Junior High School and graduated from what was then Woodrow Wilson High School in 1947. After finishing high school and finding success with his side entrepreneurial and investment ventures, Buffett wanted to skip college to go directly into business but was overruled by his father. Buffett showcased an interest in business and investing at a young age. He was inspired by a book he borrowed from the Omaha public library at age seven, One Thousand Ways to Make $1000. Much of Buffett's early childhood years were enlivened with entrepreneurial ventures. In one of his first business ventures, Buffett sold chewing gum, Coca-Cola, and weekly magazines door to door. He worked in his grandfather's grocery store. During his high school years, he also made money delivering newspapers, selling golf balls and stamps, and detailing cars, among other means. On his first income tax return in 1944, Buffett took a $35 deduction (equivalent to $640 in 2025) for the use of his bicycle and watch on his paper route. In 1945, as a high school sophomore, Buffett and a friend spent $25 (equivalent to $447 in 2025) to purchase a used pinball machine, which they placed in the local barber shop. Within months, they owned several machines in three different barber shops across Omaha. In 1947 they sold the business to a war veteran for $1,200 (equivalent to $17,303 in 2025). Buffett's interest in the stock market and investing dates back to his schoolboy days spent in the customers' lounge of a regional stock brokerage near his father's own brokerage office. His father took interest in cultivating and educating the young Warren's curiosity surrounding the subject of business and investing, even at one point taking him to visit the New York Stock Exchange when he was 10. At 11, he bought three shares of Cities Service Preferred for himself, and three for his sister Doris Buffett (who also became a philanthropist). At 15, Warren made more than $175 monthly (equivale

Did You Know?

• Buffett bought his first stock at age 11, purchasing three shares of Cities Service Preferred for himself and three for his sister.
• At 14, Buffett used $1,200 of his savings to buy a 40-acre farm worked by a tenant farmer.
• Buffett was rejected by Harvard Business School before enrolling at Columbia Business School to study under Benjamin Graham.
• He offered to work for Benjamin Graham for free, but Graham refused.
• Buffett taught an 'Investment Principles' night class at the University of Nebraska-Omaha where the average age of his students was more than twice his own.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"Variant: The stock market is a no-called-strike game. You don't have to swing at everything — you can wait for your pitch. The problem when you're a money manager is that your fans keep yelling, "Swing, you bum!" — Warren Buffett "You're dealing with a lot of silly people in the marketplace; it's like a great big casino and everyone else is boozing. If you can stick with Pepsi, you should be O.K." — Warren Buffett "Love is the greatest advantage a parent can give." — Warren Buffett "I'll tell you why I like the cigarette business. ... It costs a penny to make. Sell it for a dollar. It's addictive. And there's fantastic brand loyalty." — Warren Buffett