Bill Ackman turned $27 million into $2.6 billion as the coronavirus ravaged markets. Here are 12 of his most insightful quotes.

Ben WinckMay 6, 2020, 20:22 IST

REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Pershing Square Capital Management founder Bill Ackman was known for colorful statements well before his notorious March 18 CNBC interview.
The billionaire investor is among the few to win out through the tumultuous first quarter, turning a $27 million bet on credit protection into $2.6 billion when coronavirus risks caught up with the financial sector.
Some commentators allege Ackman's emotional 30-minute CNBC appearance was made to boost his investments, though the fund manager has rebuked such claims.
Here are 12 of Bill Ackman's most insightful quotes on markets, investing, and business strategy.
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Bill Ackman made headlines in March for a passionate 30-minute CNBC interview, but his penchant for remarkable statements isn't new.

The Pershing Square Capital Management founder is hot off a stellar first quarter, turning a $27 million position into $2.6 billion through credit protection assets in late March. When markets tanked on fresh coronavirus worries and debt ratings deteriorated, Ackman made enough profits to offset losses elsewhere in his portfolio.

The hedge fund manager was among the billionaires warning of outsized economic catastrophe should the US fail to properly combat the pandemic. His dire forecasts in a March 18 CNBC appearance helped push the stock market to intraday lows and drew allegations of fearmongering to boost his credit bets.

Ackman later clarified in a tweet that he believed the White House would properly address the health crisis.

"If that happens, we can win the war against the virus and the markets and the economy will soar," he wrote.

The billionaire has been quieter lately, but several of the remarks Ackman has made throughout his career still ring true amid volatile markets and the sharp economic downturn.

Here are 12 of Bill Ackman's most insightful quotes on markets, investing, and business strategy.

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'Since we believe that short-term market and economic prognostication is largely a fool's errand, we invest according to a strategy that makes the need to rely on the short-term market or economic assessments largely irrelevant'

Activist investor Bill Ackman, chief executive of Pershing Square, walks on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange November 10, 2015. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

'Since we believe that short-term market and economic prognostication is largely a fool's errand, we invest according to a strategy that makes the need to rely on the short-term market or economic assessments largely irrelevant'

'The benefit of short-sellers to the markets is they're sort of the canary in the coal mine. They are the early warning signal about a problem in the business, a problem in the capital markets.'

REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

'The benefit of short-sellers to the markets is they're sort of the canary in the coal mine. They are the early warning signal about a problem in the business, a problem in the capital markets.'

'Everyone told me it was a really stupid idea to start my own hedge fund right out of business school. That's how I knew that it was a good idea.'

William Ackman, founder and CEO of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management, attends the Sohn Investment Conference in New York Thomson Reuters

'Capitalism does not work in an 18-month shutdown; capitalism can work in a 30-day shutdown.'

Activist investor Bill Ackman, chief executive of Pershing Square Capital, speaks with a specialist trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Thomson Reuters

'What the market tells you in the short term is what a certain subset of people believe. That doesn't mean they're right.'

Activist investor Bill Ackman, chief executive of Pershing Square walks on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange November 10, 2015. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

'If I believe that I am right, I will take it to the end of the earth until I am proven right'

Brendan McDermid

'I think most investors overdiversify because they're lazy. They haven't done enough research into any of their companies. If they've got 200 positions, do you think they know what's going on at any one of those companies at this moment?'

Activist investor Bill Ackman, chief executive of Pershing Square Capital, speaks with David Weinreb, CEO of Howard Hughes Corp. on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Thomson Reuters

'I think most investors overdiversify because they're lazy. They haven't done enough research into any of their companies. If they've got 200 positions, do you think they know what's going on at any one of those companies at this moment?'

'I'm not emotional about investments. Investing is something where you have to be purely rational and not let emotion affect your decision making - just the facts.'

Bryan Bedder/Getty Images/The New York Times

'From day one, I was always unafraid to ask someone to invest because, I thought that, while capital was a commodity, good investment ideas were rare assets'

William 'Bill' Ackman, CEO and Portfolio Manager of Pershing Square Capital Management, speaks during the Sohn Investment Conference in New York City Thomson Reuters

'I've seen very few people in the world accomplish anything unless they were optimists'

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: William Ackman of Pershing Square Management Reuters

'Investing is a business where you can look very silly for a long period of time before you are proven right'

Bill Ackman, chief executive officer and portfolio manager at Pershing Square Capital Management, speaks during the SALT conference in Las Vegas Reuters

'In order to be successful, you have to make sure that being rejected doesn't bother you at all'

Bill Ackman attends the Hamptons International Film Festival SummerDocs Series screening of 'Betting On Zero' at Guild Hall on August 6, 2016 in East Hampton, New York. Matthew Eisman/Getty Images

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Bill Ackman turned $27 million into $2.6 billion as the coronavirus ravaged markets. Here are 12 of his most insightful quotes.

'Since we believe that short-term market and economic prognostication is largely a fool's errand, we invest according to a strategy that makes the need to rely on the short-term market or economic assessments largely irrelevant'

'The benefit of short-sellers to the markets is they're sort of the canary in the coal mine. They are the early warning signal about a problem in the business, a problem in the capital markets.'

'Everyone told me it was a really stupid idea to start my own hedge fund right out of business school. That's how I knew that it was a good idea.'

'Capitalism does not work in an 18-month shutdown; capitalism can work in a 30-day shutdown.'

'What the market tells you in the short term is what a certain subset of people believe. That doesn't mean they're right.'

'If I believe that I am right, I will take it to the end of the earth until I am proven right'

'I think most investors overdiversify because they're lazy. They haven't done enough research into any of their companies. If they've got 200 positions, do you think they know what's going on at any one of those companies at this moment?'

'I'm not emotional about investments. Investing is something where you have to be purely rational and not let emotion affect your decision making - just the facts.'

'From day one, I was always unafraid to ask someone to invest because, I thought that, while capital was a commodity, good investment ideas were rare assets'

'I've seen very few people in the world accomplish anything unless they were optimists'

'Investing is a business where you can look very silly for a long period of time before you are proven right'

'In order to be successful, you have to make sure that being rejected doesn't bother you at all'