AIMster avant la lettre
I wondered is she would have bought the Greek bonds
Hetty Green(1834-1916).
Unsurprisingly, Hetty was a value investor. As she said, "There is no secret in fortune making. All you have to do is buy cheap and sell dear, act with thrift and shrewdness and be persistent." She invested in a variety of assets, including stocks, bonds, railroads, and mortgages, but her specialty was buying when everyone else was panicking. After all, this was a time when the stock market was not nearly as regulated as it is now. Margin requirements were minimal -- people could get huge amounts of leverage by buying stocks almost entirely with borrowed money.
So, when the markets fell, there were great opportunities. Hetty did not borrow, she maintained significant liquid assets, and she knew the value of stocks and bonds. As a result, she had both the means and knowledge to profit when a crisis arose. For instance, days after the end of the Civil War, she bought Civil War bonds that everyone thought were worthless, soon doubling her net worth. Later, during the Panic of 1907, when a string of banks failed and the stock market crashed, Hetty was buying with both hands.
Hetty liked real assets, and was neither speculative, nor ultra-conservative.
www.fool.com/investing/value/2005/06/14/the-witch-of-wall-street.aspx
