The CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management cited a desire to unleash “long-term value” when making yesterday’s $64 billion bid to acquire Universal Music Group. He’s long admired the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, who handed the CEO role to Greg Abel earlier this year. And Ackman revived talk of creating a modern-day Berkshire last month when filing to list Pershing with a new fund on the New York Stock Exchange. 

As investors look at Pershing’s impending IPO as an alternative to Berkshire in the world of value investing, it’s worth comparing the two men and the companies they’ve built. 

Investing Approach – Buffett has a six-decade track record of 20% compound annual returns to investors, roughly double the S&P 500. Ackman’s hedge fund has delivered similar returns since its 2004 launch, not including fees. But it’s a choppier journey when you’re an activist investor who names enemies, looks for problems to fix and wages war in public. Pershing’s turnover is double that of Berkshire, though both are relatively low, and it’s a fraction the size. Ackman’s focus on fee growth and asset management is also more akin to Blackstone than Berkshire. Capital can be more nimble than a conglomerate. But Ackman’s UMG bid reinforces a philosophy embraced by Buffett, who prefers to buy “wonderful businesses at fair prices” and work privately with management to unlock value. 

Personal Brand – The differences in temperament and tactics are stark. It’s hard to compete with a billionaire who clips McDonald’s coupons and still lives in the house he bought for $31,500 in 1958. While Ackman says he turns off lights and drives around to look for cheap parking, I know who I’d cast for the role of George Bailey in It’s A Wonderful Life. Among other things, Buffett is polite, down to earth, and feels a civic duty to pay higher taxes. Ackman is more polarizing, using his platform  to condemn DEI as anti-capitalist, speak out against tariffs, bet on political races, and take a hardball approach to “fixing things.”  An everyman, he’s not. Ackman’s unsuccessful campaign against Herbalife made him look out of touch, at least to those of us who had plenty of experience with multilevel-marketing companies.

Still, track record tends to trump personality when it comes to making money. Shares in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac jumped 40% the day after Ackman called them “stupidly cheap.”  Those who love Ackman, vitriol and all, probably don’t care if he morphs into Berkshire’s model as long as he delivers results.

Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com

Top leadership news

Anthropic's sneak peek

Anthropic says its new AI model is “by far the most powerful” it’s ever developed. It’s providing companies like Amazon Web Services, Apple, and JPMorgan access before the model’s official releases to give the firms a chance to bolster their cybersecurity defenses.

Frito-lay's affordability bid

This year, PepsiCo-owned Frito-Lay began lowering prices on its Doritos, Lay’s, and Cheetos after years of significant price increases. The long-awaited push towards affordability may be too late. 

Supermicro board members start internal investigation

Two Supermicro board members have started an internal investigation following the arrest of the company’s cofounder on charges of smuggling $2.5 billion in Nvidia chips to China. Two years ago, an independent director on the board found “no evidence of fraud or misconduct on the part of management or the board of directors.”

The markets

S&P 500 futures are up 2.51% this morning. The last session closed up 0.08%. The STOXX Europe 600 was up 3.41% in early trading. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 was up 2.22% in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 5.39%. China’s CSI 300 was up 3.49%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 3.09%. South Korea’s KOSPI was up 6.87%. India’s NIFTY 50 is up 3.56% today. Bitcoin was up to $71K.

Around the watercooler

Jamie Dimon warns of growing crypto competition in annual letter: ‘We need to roll out our own blockchain technology’ by Jack Kubinec

The megamanager era: AI is doubling bosses’ workloads—and the costs are just beginning to show by Nick Lichtenberg

Lowe’s is investing $250 million to train plumbers, carpenters, and electricians as its CEO says skilled trades are ‘critical to the future’ by Preston Fore

A councilmember backed a data center project. Then 13 bullets and a ‘No Data Centers’ note hit his home by Jake Angelo

CEO Daily is curated and edited by Joey Abrams, Claire Zillman and Lee Clifford.