巴菲特致股东的信（1972年）①纺织业务②保险承销

To the Stockholders of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.:

Operating earnings of Berkshire Hathaway during 1972 amounted to a highly satisfactory 19.8% of beginning shareholders’ equity. Significant improvement was recorded in all of our major lines of business, but the most dramatic gains were in insurance underwriting profit. Due to an unusual convergence of favorable factors—diminishing auto accident frequency, moderating accident severity, and an absence of major catastrophes—underwriting profit margins achieved a level far above averages of the past or expectations of the future.

致伯克希尔·哈撒韦公司的全体股东：

1972年伯克希尔·哈撒韦的营业利润令人兴奋的达到了年初股东权益的19.8%。这些业绩都记录在我们所有的主要业务当中。但最大的利润贡献是我们的保险承保利润。由于汽车事故频率减少、严重性降低和没有重大灾难发生，在这些有利因素不同寻常的协同作用下，保费利润已经超过了我们的历史平均水平，甚至要比我们未来的预期利润还要高。

While we anticipate a modest decrease in operating earnings during 1973, it seems clear that our diversification moves of recent years have established a significantly higher base of normal earning power. Your present management assumed policy control of the company in May, 1965. Eight years later, our 1972 operating earnings of $11,116,256 represent a return many-fold higher than would have been produced had we continued to devote our resources entirely to the textile business. At the end of the 1964 fiscal year, shareholders’ equity totaled $22,138,753. Since that time, no additional equity capital has been introduced into the business, either through cash sale or through merger. On the contrary, some stock has been reacquired, reducing outstanding shares by 14%. The increase in book value per share from $19.46 at fiscal year-end 1964 to $69.72 at 1972 year-end amounts to about 16.5% compounded annually.

虽然我们预测1973年营业利润会有适度降低，但是近年来我们的多样化的举动已经建立了一个高盈利的基础。假定我们在1965年接管伯克希尔，继续将我们的资金投入到我们的纺织业务中我们的利润是非常低的。1972年的营业利润为$11,116,256，是我们如上述那样做（继续投资于纺织业务）的好多倍。1964年底，伯克希尔的股东权益为$22,138,753。从那时起，我们没有把额外的资本（现金方式或者合并方式）投入纺织业务。相反，我们对股票进行了回购，使股本减少了14%。每股账面价值从1964年的19.46美元增加到1972年的69.72美元，复合增长率为16.5%。

Our three major acquisitions of recent years have all worked out exceptionally well—from both the financial and human standpoints. In all three cases, the founders were major sellers and received significant proceeds in cash—and, in all three cases, the same individuals, Jack Ringwalt, Gene Abegg and Vic Raab, have continued to run the businesses with undiminished energy and imagination which have resulted in further improvement of the fine records previously established.

近年来，不论从金融方面还是人力方面，我们的三个主要收购表现的都非常的好。在这三个收购中，创始人是主要卖方，在将公司卖给我们时收到了现金，同时Jack Ringwalt,Gene Abegg和Vic Raab三个人继续经营着企业，热情和想象力丝毫没有减少，使公司的业务继续保持好的发展势头。

We will continue to search for logical extensions of our present operations, and also for new operations which will allow us to continue to employ our capital effectively.

我们将继续稳健拓展主要业务，同时也开拓新业务，使我们的资本更有效率的运用。

Textile Operations

As predicted in last year’s annual report, the textile industry experienced a pickup in 1972. In recent years, Ken Chace and Ralph Rigby have developed an outstanding sales organization enjoying a growing reputation for service and reliability. Manufacturing capabilities have been restructured to complement our sales strengths.

纺织业务

正如去年年报所说的，我们的纺织业务1972年有了些起色。这几年，Ken Chace和Ralph Rigby建立了出色的销售队伍，名声、服务、责任心都非常好。我们对产品生产进行了调整，使其可以与我们的销售相适应。

Helped by the industry recovery, we experienced some payoff from these efforts in 1972. Inventories were controlled, minimizing close-out losses in addition to minimizing capital requirements; product mix was greatly improved. While the general level of profitability of the industry will always be the primary factor in determining the level of our textile earnings, we believe that our relative position within the industry has noticeably improved. The outlook for 1973 is good.

受惠于行业复苏，我们的努力在1972年获得了一些成绩。除了减少资金需求，存货也得到控制，出清存货损失也达到最小化，产品结构大大提高了。虽然行业大背景对我们纺织业务影响很大，但是我们在行业的地位得到了很大的提升。1973年的前景应该会比较好。

Insurance Underwriting

Our exceptional underwriting profits during 1972 in the large traditional area of our insurance business at National Indemnity present a paradox. They served to swell substantially total corporate profits for 1972, but the factors which produced such profits induced exceptional amounts of new competition at what we believe to be a non-compensatory level of rates. Overall, we probably would have retained better prospects for the next five years if profits had not risen so dramatically this year.

保险承销

1972年，国民保险公司在传统保险领域的保费利润增长巨大，这与现实经营环境貌似相冲突。72年利润大增，但这样的利润导致产生大量的新竞争对手。总之，如果今年利润没有这样大幅的增加，我们会预测我们未来5年发展前景良好。

Substantial new competition was forecast in our annual report for last year and we experienced in 1972 the decline in premium volume that we stated such competition implied. Our belief is that industry underwriting profit margins will narrow substantially in 1973 or 1974 and, in time, this may produce an environment in which our historical growth can be resumed. Unfortunately, there is a lag between deterioration of underwriting results and tempering of competition. During this period we expect to continue to have negative volume comparisons in our traditional operation. Our seasoned management, headed by Jack Ringwalt and Phil Liesche, will continue to underwrite to produce a profit, although not at the level of 1972, and base our rates on long-term expectations rather than short-term hopes. Although this approach has meant dips in volume from time to time in the past, it has produced excellent long-term results.

我们在去年年度报告里已经预测了将会有大量新的竞争对手出现，依据是去年的保单数量。我们认为行业承保利润率在1973、1974年将会变小。不幸的是，现在剧烈竞争的影响可能是在未来几年。在这段时间，我们希望继续减少我们的保单数量。我们经验丰富的管理层（由Jack Ringwalt和Phil Liesche领导）将继续保持承保利润（虽然不会像1972年那样高），我们的眼光是长期而非短期。虽然现在情况可能不是太好，但长期来看我们的业绩会很好。

Also as predicted in last year’s report, our reinsurance division experienced many of the same competitive factors in 1972. A multitude of new organizations entered what has historically been a rather small field, and rates were often cut substantially, and we believe unsoundly, particularly in the catastrophe area. The past year turned out to be unusually free of catastrophes and our underwriting experience was good.

我们的再保险部门也同样在72年面临了很大的竞争。大量新公司进入到这个原本就不大的市场，而且利率水平也出现了下降，尤其是在可能发生大灾难的区域。由于72年没有出现重大灾难，我们业务运转良好。

George Young has built a substantial and profitable reinsurance operation in just a few years. In the longer term we plan to be a very major factor in the reinsurance field, but an immediate expansion of volume is not sensible against a background of deteriorating rates. In our view, underwriting exposures are greater than ever. When the loss potential inherent in such exposures becomes an actuality, repricing will take place which should give us a chance to expand significantly.

George Young在几年时间里就已经建立了非常好的再保险业务。从长远来看，我们计划成为该领域的领头羊。但是在利率条件恶化的背景下，冒然增加保单量不是一个明智的做法。在我们看来，承销风险比以往任何时候都大。如果潜在的损失变为现实，我们会重新进行评估，从而指导我们工作，使其更好发展。

In the “home state” operation, our oldest and largest such company, Cornhusker Casualty Company, operating in Nebraska only, achieved good underwriting results. In the second full year, the home state marketing appeal has been proven with the attainment of volume on the order of one-third of that achieved by “old line” giants who have operated in the state for many decades.

在“home state”业务上，我们第一个公司，Cornhusker Casualty Company取得了非常理想的业绩。该公司只在内布拉斯加州有业务。在第二年，保险索赔已经占到了整个地区订单的三分之一。

Our two smaller companies, in Minnesota and Texas, had unsatisfactory loss ratios on very small volume. The home state managements understand that underwriting profitably is the yardstick of success and that operations can only be expanded significantly when it is clear that we are doing the right job in the underwriting area. Expense ratios at the new companies are also high, but that is to be expected when they are in the development stage.

另外两家小公司分别位于Minnesota和Texas，发生了少量的亏损。“home state”的管理层明白对我们业绩衡量的唯一标尺为盈利能力，我们只有在我们的业务被证明是明智的情况下，才开始拓展我们的业务。新公司的费用较高，其原因为他们现在处于一个高速发展时期。

John Ringwalt has done an excellent job of launching this operation, and plans to expand into at least one additional state during 1973. While there is much work yet to be done, the home state operation appears to have major long-range potential.

John Ringwalt出色的运营着我们的业务，并计划在73年至少增加一个州的业务量。现在还有很多的工作需要做。“home state”的前景会相当的好。

Last year it was reported that we had acquired Home and Automobile Insurance Company of Chicago. We felt good about the acquisition at the time, and we feel even better now. Led by Vic Raab, this company continued its excellent record in 1972. During 1973 we expect to enter the Florida (Dade County) and California (Los Angeles) markets with the same sort of specialized urban auto coverage which Home and Auto has practiced so successfully in Cook County. Vic has the managerial capacity to run a much larger operation. Our expectation is that Home and Auto will expand significantly within a few years.

去年我们说了我们收购了位于芝加哥的Home and Automobile Insurance。那时我们感觉良好，现在感觉更好。公司由Vic Raab领导，72年业务仍然相当不错。我们计划73年进入佛罗里达和加州市场，该公司在城市有很高的机动车辆覆盖率，在库克郡我们就是采用这种策略成功的。Vic Raab拥有管理大公司的才能。我们希望公司未来几年加速发展。