Steve Nichols, principal at Warnke/Nichols Ltd.
Name: Steve Nichols, CFA
Title: Principal
Company: Warnke/Nichols Ltd. (investment management)
Family: wife, Kim, President of Racine Metal-Fab Ltd., daughters Kelly (21, Middlebury College) and Stephanie (18, UW-Stout)
City of Residence: Greendale
What’s new at your company?
"We moved into new offices down the hall from our old ones, and now have windows, color on the walls, and a kitchen, thanks to our landlord, Bill Eisner."
What are the most interesting issues you work with clients on?
"Helping preserve and grow their invested capital; managing their expectations for stock returns; helping them learn and understand the principles of value investing."
What is the most difficult or challenging project you’ve been involved with?
"Because we knew the bubble would burst eventually, we refused to participate in the technology investment mania in the late 1990s. As a result, from April 1998 through February 2000, our investment performance suffered and we lost one-third of our managed assets. However, we stuck to our proven investment approach and over the next 2 years our remaining clients’ results soared during a declining stock market."
What was the funniest moment of your career?
"The funniest moments are watching company chairman Warren Buffett and his partner, Charlie Munger, rip on each other at the Berkshire Hathaway annual meetings in Omaha."
