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Warren Buffett: 10 pieces of investment advice from America's greatest investor

Warren Buffett, the fourth richest person in the world and the man widely thought to be the greatest investor of the past century, celebrates his birthday Aug. 30. As well regarded for his folksy wisdom as his monetary acumen, Mr. Buffett has been regaling investors with helpful nuggets of advice for decades. Here are some of Warren Buffet's best investment tips (but be forewarned: the Oracle of Omaha doesn't give out stock picks). 

1. 'It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.'

Nati Harnik/AP/File
Warren Buffett smiles during a television interview in Omaha, Neb., on May 6. The billionaire investor and philanthropist celebrates his birthday Friday, Aug. 30, 2013.

Source: 1989 Letter to shareholders

This is one of Buffett's more famous quotes, and it reflects one of the basic tenets of his investment strategy: He sticks with companies he can fully comprehend, and ones for which the intrinsic value is self-evident, regardless of the current state of their finances. It's a philosophy that has served him well, making him one of the richest men in the world (he was the single-richest, in fact, in 2008, according to Forbes' annual list).

Buffett's interest in moneymaking began early. As a boy growing up in Omaha, Neb., he would sell chewing gum and magazines door to door, and he filed his first tax return at age 14 (marking deductions for his bicycle and watch, used on a paper route). In high school, Buffett and a friend bought a pinball machine and put in a local barber shop; they quickly expanded that enterprise to include several pinball machines around town. 

Today, Buffett's personal net worth hovers right around $55 billion and his investment firm, Berkshire Hathaway, owns a number of notable American companies outright, including: GEICO, Dairy Queen, Fruit of the Loom, Helzberg Diamonds, and half of Heinz. 

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Mark Sappenfield
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