Prem Watsa buys 'ridiculously cheap' Fairfax shares

Prem Watsa, the chairman and CEO of Canada-based Fairfax Financial Holdings, the property and casualty re/insurance conglomerate which includes OdysseyRe, Allied World and Brit, has acquired extra shares in the company.

Watsa has recently purchased 482,600 subordinate voting shares of Fairfax for an aggregate purchase cost of approximately $148.95 million.

Watsa stated that the company's shares have never traded at a bigger discount than they have recently.

“At our AGM and on our first quarter earnings release call, I said that our shares are ‘ridiculously cheap’. That statement reflected my recognition that in the 35 years since Fairfax began, I have never seen Fairfax shares sell at a bigger discount to their intrinsic value than they have recently," he said.

"I have now backed up my strong words by purchasing close to $150 million of Fairfax shares in the market over the last few days, as I believe that this will be an excellent long term investment,” Watsa added.