I don't listen to the conference calls and I read the transcripts very infrequently. I usually go with outside opinions about management. If Buffett trusts them, I trust them too. :)
Overall, I am very cynical and I believe that pretty much everybody is selling their own book. Even Buffett with his folksy style is selling his stuff: we have covered multiple cases on this thread where it was "watch what I do, not what I say" with him. In fact, the best leaders like Jobs probably tend to oversell. So IMHO the fact that management glosses over problems does not mean that they are bad or incompetent. It's usually natural state of their existence.
On the other hand, I have not seen that many successful managers/leaders who are humble and open. Buffett might come closest, but even he's no saint. And he does not have to sell (as much), since he controls BRK and he does not need to care about fund managers or analysts or activist shareholders punching him in the face if he openly talks about problems.
I agree with what others said. If you can discern when management are openly lying or overselling even more than it is expected, then it's worth listening to the calls. Otherwise, read the transcripts or just read the financial statements.
So far I don't think I made a single great investment choice based on me discerning something about management directly from their presentations. There are very successful manager-leaders who I hate and very successful manager-leaders who I like. But choosing based on that would have been (and perhaps was if I ever did it) a losing proposition. I never liked Jobs, for example, and I don't particularly like the Google triumvirate.
I am not sure it's useful to talk in abstract and would prefer if you (and others) gave concrete examples. But I also still remember that you don't like to talk about concrete companies, since then we get into the "I have to justify my stock position" mentality. So I won't insist. ;) |
