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Behind the Balance SheetAuthor: Stephen Clapham's Podcast on Value Investing Stockmarket Analysis Equities
Our objective is to remove some of the mystique around investing and improve our understanding of what makes a successful investment, or indeed an unsuccessful one. We meet leading investors and commentators and educate ourselves not just about the world of investing but also about the world. Our goal is to inform, educate, entertain and make you a better investor. We feature famous guests and some you may not know. But we can learn from them all, whether you are one of our core audience of professional investors, a student looking to enter the industry or a private investor. Language: en Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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#53 The Plodder
Episode 3
Wednesday, 19 November, 2025
Tom Gayner is the CEO of Markel Group and has run its investment portfolio for 35 years, beating the index by an astonishing 1.5% pa. This makes him one of the most successful capital allocators in the US stockmarket, yet he is under the radar. He explains why he holds 140 stocks, although the top 40 represent 80% of the value; why there are so few imitators of the insurance/equity and business investment strategy so successfully deployed by Berkshire and Markel; the simple way to analyse an insurance business; what he has learned from being on the boards of Graham Holdings with Warren Buffett and on the Coca Cola Company; and one secret of Warren Buffett’s success which you likely will not have heard before. Tom Gayner is anything but a plodder, but his thoughtful, modest and cautious approach to investing and life makes him a fantastic role model.
