Goes to show it is all about management quality and balance sheet strength rather than the industry that Occidental is in, something Senex has going for it in its favour, too. Buffet certainly isn't running away like he did with the airlines and a few banks. Occidental had one of the poorest quality balance sheets in the industry, so it wasn't about the industry but the specific company the was the problem.
Looking at how much a company is allocated to Berkshire's portfolio misunderstands their management. 1. Berkshire is worth around 20x Suncor. 2. They own 1% of Suncor 3.The vast majority of his holdings are worth less than 1% of the portfolio (Apple is worth 44%, consistent with him historically letting winners run) 4. For comparison, Barrick Gold's value in the portfolio is also around 0.25% but as I recall that didn't lead to his conviction being questioned by analysts!
Altogether, him increasing Suncor's position gives me more conviction in Senex in a weird way, as they both share some positive qualitative characteristics.
SXY Price at posting:
28.5¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held