Wells Fargo
Old Ba (Buffett) really understands banks — when he says it’s cheap, it’s cheap — follow those who truly understand
🏢 Company Profile
Wells Fargo is one of America’s largest banks and one of Buffett’s core long-term holdings. During the 2009 financial crisis, Duan Yongping followed Buffett into buying Wells Fargo — one of his few “co-investment” cases, with clear logic behind it.
📅 Investment Timeline
| Time | Event | Duan Yongping’s Original Words/Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Bought during financial crisis | Followed Buffett to buy; “Old Ba really understands banks, plus he’s a WFC director — when he says it’s cheap, it’s cheap” (2011-05-29) |
| During holding | Judgment logic | ”Although I don’t understand banks as well as Old Ba, I’m not completely clueless either. I’ve seen his reasoning and strongly agree” (2011-05-29) |
💡 Why Duan Yongping Bought
- Buffett truly understands banks and is a WFC director: Duan Yongping admits he doesn’t understand banks as well as Buffett but agrees with Buffett’s judgment logic. This is a special case of “borrowing someone else’s circle of competence” — not blind following but agreement after understanding the other party’s logic. (Source: Duan Yongping Investment Q&A Record (Investment Logic Volume), 2011-05-29)
- Has basic judgment himself, not completely ignorant: Duan Yongping said “I’m not completely clueless either.” He has seen Buffett’s analytical logic and strongly agrees. This relates to 能力圈 boundary judgment — not completely outside the circle but at the edge, using someone more knowledgeable to assist decision-making.
- Extreme undervaluation caused by financial crisis: During the 2009 financial crisis, bank stocks were generally panic-sold by the market — a typical time for 安全边际 to appear. The core of 牛市熊市策略 is staying rational when others are fearful.
💬 Excerpts from Original Text
“Old Ba really understands banks, plus he’s a WFC director — when he says it’s cheap, it’s cheap. Also, although I don’t understand banks as well as Old Ba, I’m not completely clueless either. I’ve seen his reasoning and strongly agree. For some of their other companies I don’t quite agree, so I won’t follow.” (Source: Duan Yongping Investment Q&A Record (Investment Logic Volume), 2011-05-29)
📚 Investment Insights
- Prerequisite for following is understanding logic, not blind imitation: Duan Yongping followed Buffett into Wells Fargo because he had seen Buffett’s analytical logic and agreed with it, not because “Buffett bought so I’ll buy too.” He explicitly said “for some other companies I don’t quite agree, so I won’t follow” — showing he makes his own judgments.
- Circle of competence isn’t binary: It’s not that you must “completely understand” to buy, nor that if you’re “completely ignorant” you can’t buy. The key is whether you’ve grasped the core logic and whether your judgment has sufficient basis.
- Crisis is when 安全边际 appears: Buying quality bank stocks during a financial crisis is a classic embodiment of “be greedy when others are fearful.”
🔗 Related Notes
Concepts Demonstrated: 能力圈 · 安全边际 · 买入逻辑 · 牛市熊市策略
Related Topics 段永平的经典投资案例 · 买入的逻辑：什么时候值得出手
富国银行
老巴很懂银行，他说很便宜的时候那就是很便宜了——跟着真正懂的人买
🏢 公司简介
富国银行（Wells Fargo）是美国最大的银行之一，巴菲特长期持有的核心仓位之一。2009年金融危机期间，段永平跟随巴菲特买入富国银行，这是他少数几次”跟投”的案例，背后有清晰的逻辑。
📅 投资时间线
| 时间 | 事件 | 段永平的原话/判断 |
|---|---|---|
| 2009年 | 金融危机期间买入 | 跟随巴菲特买入，“老巴很懂银行，而且是WFC的董事，他说很便宜的时候那就是很便宜了”（2011-05-29） |
| 持有期间 | 判断逻辑 | ”我虽然不如老巴懂银行，但也不是一点也不懂，我看过他说的道理，非常认同”（2011-05-29） |
💡 段永平为什么买入
- 巴菲特是真正懂银行的人，且是WFC董事：段永平承认自己不如巴菲特懂银行，但他认同巴菲特的判断逻辑。这是一种特殊情况下的”借用能力圈”——不是盲目跟风，而是在理解了对方逻辑之后的认同。（来源：段永平投资问答录(投资逻辑篇)，2011-05-29）
- 自己也有基本判断，不是完全不懂：段永平说”也不是一点也不懂”，他看过巴菲特的分析逻辑，非常认同。这和能力圈的边界判断有关——不是完全在圈外，而是在边缘地带，借助更懂的人的判断来辅助决策。
- 金融危机造成的极度低估：2009年金融危机期间，银行股普遍被市场恐慌性抛售，这是安全边际出现的典型时机。牛市熊市策略的核心就是在别人恐惧时保持理性。
💬 原文摘录
“老巴很懂银行，而且是WFC的董事，他说很便宜的时候那就是很便宜了。另外，我虽然不如老巴懂银行，但也不是一点也不懂，我看过他说的道理，非常认同。他们有的有些公司我就不太认同，所以不会跟。“（来源：段永平投资问答录(投资逻辑篇)，2011-05-29）
📚 投资启示
- 跟投的前提是理解逻辑，而不是盲目跟随：段永平跟巴菲特买富国银行，是因为他看过巴菲特的分析逻辑并认同，而不是因为”巴菲特买了所以我也买”。他明确说”有的有些公司我就不太认同，所以不会跟”——这说明他是有判断的。
- 能力圈不是非此即彼的：不是”完全懂”才能买，也不是”完全不懂”就不能买。关键是你是否理解了核心逻辑，以及你的判断是否有足够的依据支撑。
- 危机是安全边际出现的时机：金融危机期间买入优质银行股，是”别人恐惧我贪婪”的典型体现。
🔗 相关笔记
体现的概念：能力圈 · 安全边际 · 买入逻辑 · 牛市熊市策略
相关主题 段永平的经典投资案例 · 买入的逻辑：什么时候值得出手