Bloomberg.com: Buffett Loses to Desmarais as Power Exceeds Return

"“Power Corporation is like an iceberg -- large and largely invisible,” says David Beatty, a professor of strategic management at the University of Toronto. Beatty says he begins one of his lectures by asking master’s degree students about the careers of Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric Co., and Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Then he flashes a photo of the elder Desmarais.

“None of them knows who it is,” Beatty says. “And I say, ‘It’s Paul Desmarais, and he’s done better than the other guys.’”

Those who bet on Power Corp. in the 15 years from 1993 to 2008 earned slightly more than investors in Omaha, Nebraska- based Berkshire Hathaway, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Power Corp.’s average annual return in the period, including reinvested dividends, was 14.5 percent. Berkshire, which pays no dividend, returned an average of 14.1 percent. The comparison is in local currencies."

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aEl4wizkuSTQ#