By highlighting these two events, Buffett was teaching the shareholders several essential lessons: For one, focus on intrinsic value growth, not reported earnings. Again, it’s not what the numbers are but what they mean that matters. Each business will have a couple of unique factors that are essential in evaluating its progress. Often, those unique factors are not immediately reflected in the reported earnings. In our short-attention-span world, analysts and the media so often focus on reported earnings and look no deeper.
