--- title: "8 Return Capital Quotes by 7 authors" description: "Browse 8 Return Capital quotes by 7 authors. Discover the best Return Capital sayings and thoughts." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg" --- > [Obviously, consideration of costs is key, including opportunity costs. Of course capital isn't free. It's easy to figure out your cost of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key-including-opportunity-costs/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg) > [I certainly agree that capital is not a one-dimensional object, and that the return on capital takes very different forms for different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a-one-dimensional-object-and/) [Thomas Piketty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-piketty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/thomas-piketty-3584_agree_i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a_698146.png) > [Investors must remember that their first job is to preserve their capital. After they've dealt with that, they can approach the second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-kahn/investors-must-remember-that-their-first-job-is-to-preserve-their/) [Irving Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-kahn/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0d/irving-kahn-42039_approach_investors-must-remember-that-their-first_1151240.png) > [Because in the New Normal you are more worried about the return of your capital, not return on your capital.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-el-erian/because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-worried-about-the-return-of/) [Mohamed El-Erian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-el-erian/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b9/mohamed-el-erian-19946_about_because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-w_1530819.jpg) > [“α = r × β where r is the rate of return on capital. For example, if β = 600% and r…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capital-for-example-if-600-and-r-5/) [Thomas Piketty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-piketty/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9eb/thomas-piketty-3584_economics_r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capit_1608291.png) > [The big picture is: the main thing you should be concerned about in the future are incremental returns on capital going forward.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-greenblatt/the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-should-be-concerned-about-in/) [Joel Greenblatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-greenblatt/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47f/joel-greenblatt-21588_add_the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-sh_2362294.jpg) > [We need to reverse three centuries of walling the for-profit and non-profit sectors off from one another. When you think for-profit and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-drayton/we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-walling-the-for-profit-and-non/) [Bill Drayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-drayton/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/bill-drayton-12716_areas_we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-wa_2379790.jpg) > [Optimizing return on capital will generate less growth than optimizing return on education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/optimizing-return-on-capital-will-generate-less-growth-than/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dc/anonymous-1_capital_optimizing-return-on-capital-will-genera_2473751.jpg) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/#itemlist", "name": "Return Capital Quotes", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Obviously, consideration of costs is key, including opportunity costs. Of course capital isn't free. It's easy to figure out your cost of borrowing, but theorists went bonkers on the cost of equity capital. They say that if you're generating a 100% return on capital, then you shouldn't invest in something that generates an 80% return on capital. It's crazy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charlie Munger" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key-including-opportunity-costs/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Obviously, consideration of costs is key, including opportunity costs. Of course capital isn't free. It's…” — Charlie Munger", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I certainly agree that capital is not a one-dimensional object, and that the return on capital takes very different forms for different assets or different people.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Piketty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a-one-dimensional-object-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/thomas-piketty-3584_agree_i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a_698146.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/thomas-piketty-3584_agree_i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a_698146.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c56/thomas-piketty-3584_agree_i-certainly-agree-that-capital-is-not-a_698146.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I certainly agree that capital is not a one-dimensional object, and that the return on capital takes very…” — Thomas Piketty", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Investors must remember that their first job is to preserve their capital. After they've dealt with that, they can approach the second job, seeking a return on that capital.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Irving Kahn" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-kahn/investors-must-remember-that-their-first-job-is-to-preserve-their/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0d/irving-kahn-42039_approach_investors-must-remember-that-their-first_1151240.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0d/irving-kahn-42039_approach_investors-must-remember-that-their-first_1151240.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0d/irving-kahn-42039_approach_investors-must-remember-that-their-first_1151240.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Investors must remember that their first job is to preserve their capital. After they've dealt with that…” — Irving Kahn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Because in the New Normal you are more worried about the return of your capital, not return on your capital.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mohamed El-Erian" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-el-erian/because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-worried-about-the-return-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b9/mohamed-el-erian-19946_about_because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-w_1530819.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b9/mohamed-el-erian-19946_about_because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-w_1530819.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b9/mohamed-el-erian-19946_about_because-in-the-new-normal-you-are-more-w_1530819.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Because in the New Normal you are more worried about the return of your capital, not return on your capital.” — Mohamed El-Erian", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“α = r × β where r is the rate of return on capital. For example, if β = 600% and r = 5%, then α = r × β = 30%.13 In other words, if national wealth represents the equivalent of six years of national income, and if the rate of return on capital is 5 percent per year, then capital’s share in national income is 30 percent. The formula α = r × β is a pure accounting identity. It can be applied to all societies in all periods of history, by definition. Though tautological, it should nevertheless be regarded as the first fundamental law of capitalism, because it expresses a simple, transparent relationship among the three most important concepts for analyzing the capitalist system: the capital/income ratio, the share of capital in income, and the rate of return on capital. The rate of return on capital is a central concept in”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Piketty" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-piketty/r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capital-for-example-if-600-and-r-5/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9eb/thomas-piketty-3584_economics_r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capit_1608291.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9eb/thomas-piketty-3584_economics_r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capit_1608291.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9eb/thomas-piketty-3584_economics_r-where-r-is-the-rate-of-return-on-capit_1608291.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“α = r × β where r is the rate of return on capital. For example, if β = 600% and r = 5%, then α = r × β =…” — Thomas Piketty", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The big picture is: the main thing you should be concerned about in the future are incremental returns on capital going forward. As it turns out, past history of a good return on capital is a good proxy for this but obviously not foolproof. I think this is an area where thoughtful analysis can add value to any simple ranking/screening strategy such as the magic formula. When doing in depth analysis of companies, I care very much about long term earnings power, not necessarily so much about the volatility of that earnings power but about my certainty of \"normal\" earnings power over time.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joel Greenblatt" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-greenblatt/the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-should-be-concerned-about-in/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47f/joel-greenblatt-21588_add_the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-sh_2362294.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47f/joel-greenblatt-21588_add_the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-sh_2362294.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47f/joel-greenblatt-21588_add_the-big-picture-is-the-main-thing-you-sh_2362294.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The big picture is: the main thing you should be concerned about in the future are incremental returns on…” — Joel Greenblatt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We need to reverse three centuries of walling the for-profit and non-profit sectors off from one another. When you think for-profit and non-profit, you most often think of entities with either zero social return or zero return on capital and zero social return. Clearly, there's some opportunity in the spectrum between those extremes. What's missing is the for-profit finance industry coming in to that area. Look at the enormous diversity of the for-profit financial industry as opposed to monolithic nature of the non-profit world; it's quite astonishing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill Drayton" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-drayton/we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-walling-the-for-profit-and-non/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/bill-drayton-12716_areas_we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-wa_2379790.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/bill-drayton-12716_areas_we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-wa_2379790.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c20/bill-drayton-12716_areas_we-need-to-reverse-three-centuries-of-wa_2379790.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We need to reverse three centuries of walling the for-profit and non-profit sectors off from one another…” — Bill Drayton", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Optimizing return on capital will generate less growth than optimizing return on education.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/optimizing-return-on-capital-will-generate-less-growth-than/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dc/anonymous-1_capital_optimizing-return-on-capital-will-genera_2473751.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dc/anonymous-1_capital_optimizing-return-on-capital-will-genera_2473751.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dc/anonymous-1_capital_optimizing-return-on-capital-will-genera_2473751.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Optimizing return on capital will generate less growth than optimizing return on education.” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/", "name": "Return Capital Quotes", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d98/charlie-munger-458_borrowing_obviously-consideration-of-costs-is-key_268592.jpg" }, "description": "Browse 8 Return Capital quotes by 7 authors. Discover the best Return Capital sayings and thoughts.", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/#breadcrumb" } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Topics", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Return Capital Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/return-capital/" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```