The Salad Oil Crisis was a major financial scandal that hit American Express (AmEx) in 1963. It was caused by Anthony "Tino" De Angelis, a commodities trader who ran Allied Crude Vegetable Oil Company. He took massive loans using falsified collateral—tanks supposedly filled with soybean oil that actually contained mostly water.
Since American Express was heavily involved in warehousing and certifying collateral for loans, they were directly implicated when the fraud was uncovered. The company faced huge liabilities and its reputation was severely damaged.
Stock Price Collapse
- Before the scandal, American Express stock was trading near its 52-week high of around $60 per share.
- After the fraud was exposed, the stock crashed by nearly 50%, hitting a low of around $35 per share.
- This represented a peak-to-trough decline of approximately 40% to 50%.
Warren Buffett’s Investment in American Express
- Despite the scandal, Warren Buffett saw American Express's core business as strong and believed the crisis was temporary.
- He invested 25% to 40% of his total partnership’s capital into American Express stock.
- Buffett bought shares at around $35-$40 per share during the panic selling.
This investment turned out to be one of Buffett’s most famous early bets. As public confidence in AmEx recovered, the stock rebounded significantly in the following years, yielding massive gains for Buffett’s partnership.
- Timeframe: Buffett started buying Amex stock in the mid-1960s, specifically between mid-April and June 1964.
- Price Range: The average price during this period was around $41.22 per share.
- Scandal: Buffett sensed an opportunity during the "salad oil scandal".
- Outcome: Two-and-a-half years later, Amex's stock was at $92.50, a gain of 124 percent.
- Berkshire Hathaway: Today, Berkshire Hathaway holds 151.6 million Amex shares, or 21.5% of the total.
The Vanishing Salad Oil: A $100 Million Mystery - The New York Times
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