📖George Soros

Buy Below Intrinsic Value

🌿 Intermediate★★★★★

Buy only at prices well below intrinsic value.

💬

The cardinal rule of investing: buy only when the price is significantly below your conservative estimate of intrinsic value. This builds in protection against error.

— Soros on Soros,1995

🏠 Everyday Analogy

Valuation is like buying a house: the asking price reflects mood, but true value comes from structure, location, and long-term utility. Good assets still need sensible prices.

📖 Core Interpretation

In Buy Below Intrinsic Value, George Soros focuses on the gap between price and value. Returns come from paying less than what a business is worth, not from guessing short-term market moves.
💎 Key Insight:Buying below value builds in protection against error.

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❓ Why It Matters

Ignoring valuation turns even good companies into poor investments. Overpaying compresses future returns and leaves little margin when assumptions are wrong.

🎯 How to Practice

Estimate intrinsic value with conservative assumptions, set clear buy ranges, and act only when price offers a meaningful discount with acceptable downside.

⚠️ Common Pitfalls

Confusing a low price with true cheapness
Using one metric without business context
Overly optimistic assumptions that erase margin of safety

📚 Case Studies

1
Black Wednesday Short (1992)
Soros hypothesized the British pound could not stay in the ERM band and would be forced to devalue.
✨ Outcome:Built a massive short position against the pound; when devaluation hit, his fund reportedly profited about $1 billion.
2
Asian Financial Crisis Baht Bet (1997)
He hypothesized Thai authorities could not sustain the baht’s peg amid rising external debt and capital flight.
✨ Outcome:Short positions on the baht and related assets profited when Thailand devalued and regional markets sold off sharply.

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