Warren Buffett’s “Favorite Child” Geico

I am quoted in an article on CNBC.com on Warren Buffett and Geico

First love

While Geico is only a relatively small percentage of Berkshire’s sprawling empire, Buffett does have a soft spot for the insurer as it’s one of the “Oracle of Omaha’s” first investments, and perhaps among the most successful.

Buffett learned about Geico from his professor and mentor Ben Graham, who was the chairman of the board at the insurer. In 1976, Buffett invested at $2 per share in Geico when it was in financial trouble, and Berkshire acquired the rest of the company in 1995.

“It was sort of Buffett’s first love,” said David Kass, a finance professor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “I think he has a strong emotional and sentimental attachment to it.”

Kass recalled Buffett referring to Geico as his “favorite child” during a meeting with his students in 2005.