JOE (JOE, Financial) owns approximately 170,000 acres, 67% of which is within 10 miles of the Gulf of Mexico. 120,000 of the 170,000 acres is contiguous within Walton and Bay Counties and surround 15 miles of the US Intracoastal Waterway and Great Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport. JOE has built a home grown management team, a fortress-like balance sheet including $250 million of liquid investments, and a profitable pipeline of projects to build homes, apartments, limited and full-service hotels, clubs and resorts, commercial villages, marinas, manufacturing and office spaces, and all else that is needed for Northwest Florida coastal work, life, and play.
It’s hard to put into words how well JOE performed during Hurricane Michael. The company’s assets benefit from high elevations and hurricane-resistant construction. It’s also hard to describe the devastation suffered by so many, so near. Before Hurricane Michael, JOE was growing. Much more is now required to meet communities’ demands after Hurricane Michael. Activities planned for the next five years must be accomplished in three. CEO Jorge Gonzalez will soon update shareholders with the company’s quarterly earnings. As a fellow shareholder and Chairman of JOE’s Board of Directors, I could not be prouder of JOE and its people, nor more optimistic about the future. There is a good reason for a long-term focus on JOE.
From Bruce Berkowitz (Trades, Portfolio)'s third-qurter 2018 Fairholme Fund (Trades, Portfolio)s shareholder letter.
