I ended up not buying and giving up thinking of buying Occidental Petroleum. Although Wararen Buffett has been increasing his stake in the company, my homework and gut feel just goes against this purchase. I am not saying that my homework is better than his expert team, nor my gut feel is better than his experience. But rather, buying this stock will make me feel uncomfortable and not sleep well at night.
It is often said that one cannot earn the money beyond his scope of knowledge, and in this case it is also the same. Buffett may know something I do not, but as I really cannot see how I can profit from this stock, my decision not to buy also means to give up on potential profits from it. In any case, from what I understand, Buffett’s preferred stock in Occidental Petroleum gives him an 8% dividend every year, so yeah he is not on the same level playing field as those of us who buy ordinary shares.
