Billionaire Guru Prem Watsa is the founder of Fairfax Financial holdings. He emigrated from the land of gurus, India, with $8 in his pocket, only to earn the reputation of “Canada’s Warren Buffett.” Watsa’s investing skill and work ethic are both contagiously inspiring. He once said: "Being an immigrant, you develop qualities you never thought you had, you do things you never thought you'd do. You work harder, because you're at the bottom and the only way is up. I consider my kids less fortunate for not having had the immigrant experience." The key to his success is reflected in a classic Prem Watsa quote: "Work as hard as you can, as though everything depended on you."
In the first quarter of 2013, Prem Watsa sold out holdings in three companies and reduced his position in Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC, Financial). Here’s a review of the inspired billionaire’s trades, as of the quarter ending March 31, 2013.
Sold Out: Frontier Communications Corp. (FTR, Financial) – Telecom Services
Prem Watsa sold out his position with FTR, unloading around 16 million shares at an average price of $4.26 for a loss of 0.5%.
Watsa held this stock through five quarters of losses, starting back in the third quarter of 2008.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -2.7%.
The current share price is $4.24 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Sold Out: Nexen Inc. (NXY, Financial) – Oil & Gas E&P
As of March 31, 2013, Prem Watsa also sold out his position with NXY, unloading 77,500 shares at an average price of $26.94 for a gain of 1.7%.
Watsa held this stock through three quarters of gains. His highest gain as 16.2% in the third quarter of 2012 when he first bought.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.08%.
The current share price is $27.41 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Sold Out: AuRico Gold Inc. (AUQ, Financial) – Gold
Prem Watsa also sold out his position with AUQ, unloading 23,600 shares at an average price of $7.05 for a loss of 33.9%.
Watsa held this stock for only two losing quarters. He lost 40.2% in the previous quarter.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.01%.
The current share price is $4.66 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Reduced: Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) – Banks – Regional - US
As of March 31, 2013, Prem Watsa reduced his position with WFC by 24.26%, unloading 424,024 shares at an average price of $35.65 for a gain of 12.3%.
Watsa held this stock for 10 winning quarters. His greatest gain of 142.3% was made in the first quarter of 2009. He owns 1,323,663 shares after the trade.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.58%.
The current share price is $40.05 compared to valuations over 10 years:
“Canada’s Warren Buffett,” Prem Watsa’s top buys, sells, and holdings:
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In the first quarter of 2013, Prem Watsa sold out holdings in three companies and reduced his position in Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC, Financial). Here’s a review of the inspired billionaire’s trades, as of the quarter ending March 31, 2013.
Sold Out: Frontier Communications Corp. (FTR, Financial) – Telecom Services
Prem Watsa sold out his position with FTR, unloading around 16 million shares at an average price of $4.26 for a loss of 0.5%.
Watsa held this stock through five quarters of losses, starting back in the third quarter of 2008.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -2.7%.
The current share price is $4.24 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Sold Out: Nexen Inc. (NXY, Financial) – Oil & Gas E&P
As of March 31, 2013, Prem Watsa also sold out his position with NXY, unloading 77,500 shares at an average price of $26.94 for a gain of 1.7%.
Watsa held this stock through three quarters of gains. His highest gain as 16.2% in the third quarter of 2012 when he first bought.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.08%.
The current share price is $27.41 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Sold Out: AuRico Gold Inc. (AUQ, Financial) – Gold
Prem Watsa also sold out his position with AUQ, unloading 23,600 shares at an average price of $7.05 for a loss of 33.9%.
Watsa held this stock for only two losing quarters. He lost 40.2% in the previous quarter.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.01%.
The current share price is $4.66 compared to valuations over 10 years:
Reduced: Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) – Banks – Regional - US
As of March 31, 2013, Prem Watsa reduced his position with WFC by 24.26%, unloading 424,024 shares at an average price of $35.65 for a gain of 12.3%.
Watsa held this stock for 10 winning quarters. His greatest gain of 142.3% was made in the first quarter of 2009. He owns 1,323,663 shares after the trade.
This trade impacts his portfolio by -0.58%.
The current share price is $40.05 compared to valuations over 10 years:
“Canada’s Warren Buffett,” Prem Watsa’s top buys, sells, and holdings:
If you are not yet a Premium Member, we invite you for a 7-day Free Trial.
Use the GuruFocus Value Screen to find 52-Week Lows and discover potentially deep value stocks held by billionaire Guru investors.
GuruFocus "Real Time Picks" reports the stock purchases and sales that Gurus have made within the prior 2 weeks. The report time lag can be as short as 2 days after the date of the transaction. This feature is for Premium Members only.
GuruFocus’ Score Board of Gurus shows which investors produced the largest average returns in the past 6 and 12 months, as well as on a historical basis.
