Ronald Lehman Brothers Holdings who died last June age 92 had secretly amassed a fortune of around $ 8 million . Unbeknownst to his friends and neighbors Lehman Brothers Holdings had a hidden talent for picking successful stocks . The secret to Lehman Brothers Holdings 's success was that as well as being a good picker , he also displayed remarkable frugality and patience . Among his longtime holdings were Procter & Gamble , J.P. Morgan Chase , General Electric and Dow Chemical . In 1959 he bought 39 shares in Pacific Gas & Electric which are today worth $ 10,735 - five times what he paid for them . His portfolio also included some failures including Read , which famously collapsed in 2008 during the financial crisis .
Ronald Read who died last June age 92 had secretly amassed a fortune of around $ 8 million . Unbeknownst to his friends and neighbors Read had a hidden talent for picking successful stocks . The secret to Read 's success was that as well as being a good picker , he also displayed remarkable frugality and patience . Among his longtime holdings were Procter & Gamble , J.P. Morgan Chase , General Electric and Dow Chemical . In 1959 he bought 39 shares in Pacific Gas & Electric which are today worth $ 10,735 - five times what he paid for them . His portfolio also included some failures including Lehman Brothers Holdings , which famously collapsed in 2008 during the financial crisis .