Day traders and traders in general might find the other companies better suited to their investment style, but investors trying to regain a foothold in their retirement accounts should appreciate the importance of a longer view.

Williams is the only company in the group that has proven reserves in a commodity that will go up in value over time as the rest of the world continues to increase its standard of living.

All five companies are well situated to appreciate in the next few years, and I do not think one could go wrong buying the group since they are all strong companies. That said, I do not like that the three tech giants must constantly innovate to survive and Berkshire has turned into a giant index fund.

I have actually been cherry-picking parts of Berkshire buying elements in the open market when they were down. Most recently loading up on Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC).

I discussed the possibility that Williams might be acquired by a larger company, based on its value proposition and its relative size. It has a capitalization of $8 billion. Here is how they compare.

• Williams Companies (WMB): $8 billion
• Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): $93.4 billion
• Google (GOOG): $93.8 billion
• Apple (AAPL): $110 billion
• Microsoft (MSFT): $168.5 billion

The other four companies are much more likely to be acquirers than targets. Over the past two years, Apple has been the most volatile of these stocks, but if you could take the gyrations it also provided the best reward. The worst performer over this period was the Williams Companies, hurt by the rapidly deteriorating energy pricing since mid summer of 2008.



In the long run, the world economy cannot grow without putting more pressure on energy prices, and typical reversion to the mean should propel Williams upwards.

Summarizing Williams: You get huge gas reserves in North America at discount prices, a 14,000-mile distribution system, with the following dirt cheap metrics: P/E, 6.03, P/B, 0.99, P/S, 0.69, strong cash flow, and a 3.15% yield, with the possibility that it might be acquired, and no risk from foreign tormentors.

If you want to read the original story or the rest of the series see the following:

Chasing Value: Williams has the pipes and it's not blowing smoke
Serious Money: Better than Apple, Google, Microsoft & Berkshire Hathaway, Part 1 + Part 2 + Part 3 + Part 4

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture and planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. Disclosure: I own shares of BRK.B and WMB shares and options.