<PAGE>
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC.
HICKORY PORTFOLIO
QUARTERLY
REPORT
JUNE 30, 1997
ONE PACIFIC PLACE, SUITE 600
1125 SOUTH 103 STREET
OMAHA, NEBRASKA 68124-6008
402-391-1980
800-232-4161
402-391-2125 FAX
<PAGE>
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC. -- HICKORY PORTFOLIO
PERFORMANCE SINCE INCEPTION
The following table summarizes performance information for the fund as compared
to the S&P 500 over the periods indicated. The table also sets forth average
annual total return data for the fund for the one year period ended June 30,
1997, and for the period since inception, calculated in accordance with SEC
standardized formulas.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
DIFFERENCE
PERIOD ENDED HICKORY FUND S&P 500 HICKORY FUND -- S&P 500
- ---------------------------------- ------------- ----------- -------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C>
June 30, 1997 (6 months) 16.8% 20.6% -3.8%
Dec. 31, 1996 35.4 22.9 12.5
Dec. 31, 1995 40.5 37.5 3.0
Dec. 31, 1994 -17.3 1.3 -18.6
Dec. 31, 1993 (9 months) 20.3 5.5 14.8
Since Inception (April 1, 1993)
Cumulative 120.9 117.8 3.1
Compound Annual
Average Return 20.5 20.1 0.4
</TABLE>
The portfolio's average annual total return for the one year ending June 30,
1997, and for the period since inception (April 1, 1993) was 35.2% and 20.5%,
respectively. The returns assume redemption at the end of each period and
reinvestment of dividends.
2
<PAGE>
The graph below shows the growth in value of a $100,000 investment in Hickory
since inception (April 1, 1993) to June 30, 1997, assuming the reinvestment of
all capital gain distributions and dividends, compared to the growth in value of
$100,000 invested in the S&P 500 for the same period, also assuming dividend
reinvestment. Hickory's performance numbers are calculated after deducting all
fees and expenses.
06/30/97
Hickory Portfolio
Comparison of Change in Value of $100,000
Investment in Hickory Portfolio & S&P 500
Hickory S&P 500
- --------------------------- ---------
Value of Value of
Period $100,000 $100,000
- --------------- --------- ---------
03/31/93 $ 100,000 $ 100,000
04/30/93 $ 91,621 $ 97,583
05/31/93 $ 95,999 $ 100,184
06/30/93 $ 96,609 $ 100,476
07/31/93 $ 99,489 $ 100,071
08/31/93 $ 107,204 $ 103,859
09/30/93 $ 108,002 $ 103,062
10/31/93 $ 115,026 $ 105,192
11/30/93 $ 111,438 $ 104,193
12/31/93 $ 120,267 $ 105,452
01/31/94 $ 118,421 $ 109,034
02/28/94 $ 116,476 $ 106,076
03/31/94 $ 110,109 $ 101,457
04/30/94 $ 109,060 $ 102,759
05/31/94 $ 110,065 $ 104,440
06/30/94 $ 104,789 $ 101,881
07/31/94 $ 104,153 $ 105,224
08/31/94 $ 110,360 $ 109,530
09/30/94 $ 109,189 $ 106,855
10/31/94 $ 107,787 $ 109,247
11/30/94 $ 101,810 $ 105,272
12/31/94 $ 99,476 $ 106,830
01/31/95 $ 99,870 $ 109,599
02/28/95 $ 103,994 $ 113,865
03/31/95 $ 105,513 $ 117,219
04/30/95 $ 105,229 $ 120,668
05/31/95 $ 111,054 $ 125,480
06/30/95 $ 118,331 $ 128,392
07/31/95 $ 124,859 $ 132,647
08/31/95 $ 133,445 $ 132,978
09/30/95 $ 139,110 $ 138,586
10/31/95 $ 133,237 $ 138,091
11/30/95 $ 137,345 $ 144,146
12/31/95 $ 139,728 $ 146,922
01/31/96 $ 146,980 $ 151,917
02/29/96 $ 148,848 $ 153,328
03/31/96 $ 148,334 $ 154,805
04/30/96 $ 151,650 $ 157,084
05/31/96 $ 159,513 $ 161,128
06/30/96 $ 163,383 $ 161,741
07/31/96 $ 150,145 $ 154,599
08/31/96 $ 160,466 $ 157,864
09/30/96 $ 168,758 $ 166,741
10/31/96 $ 171,426 $ 171,337
11/30/96 $ 179,661 $ 184,276
12/31/96 $ 189,125 $ 180,625
01/31/97 $ 195,946 $ 191,903
02/28/97 $ 200,614 $ 193,409
03/31/97 $ 190,121 $ 185,477
04/30/97 $ 190,461 $ 196,540
05/31/97 $ 217,223 $ 208,497
06/30/97 $ 220,947 $ 217,832
This information represents past performance of the Hickory Portfolio and is not
indicative of future performance. The investment return and principal value of
an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be
worth more or less than the original cost. The index used for comparison
purposes is the S&P 500 Index which consists of 500 companies. The index is
unmanaged and widely recognized as representative of the equity market in
general. Investment expenses are not deducted from the S&P 500 Index. Additional
information is available from Wallace R. Weitz & Co. at the address listed on
the front cover.
TOTAL RETURNS ARE BASED UPON PAST RESULTS AND ARE NOT A PREDICTION OF FUTURE
PERFORMANCE.
3
<PAGE>
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC. -- HICKORY PORTFOLIO
JUNE 30, 1997 - QUARTERLY REPORT
July 8, 1997
Dear Fellow Shareholder:
After a slow start in the quarter, Hickory came to life during the last
week in April. The table below summarizes the recent performance of Hickory and
the S&P 500 (including reinvested dividends).
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
HICKORY TOTAL S&P 500 TOTAL
PERIOD RETURN RETURN
- ---------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
<S> <C> <C>
Second Quarter 1997 16.2% 17.4%
First Half 1997 16.8 20.6
Last 12 Months (7/1/96 to 6/30/97) 35.2 34.7
</TABLE>
According to Lipper, the average growth mutual fund had a total return of
24.0% over the last twelve months.
REVIEW AND OUTLOOK
I would characterize the performance of Hickory during the second quarter
as more than satisfactory. Not only was our total return of 16.2% for the three
months quite good (I continue to believe that 16% would be a very good return
for a year), some of our underperforming cable and cellular stocks finally began
to show some signs of life. Deals in both industries helped to drive these
changes. In the cellular industry two separate companies were acquired at
premium prices. We benefited directly when a takeover of CommNet Cellular was
announced. In cable, the biggest news was Microsoft's deal to buy $1 billion of
Comcast stock at an above-market price. I did not expect any of these specific
events at this time, but from my perspective I would not characterize them as a
major surprise. I have long felt that the stock market had been seriously
undervaluing cellular companies, so it is gratifying, but not particularly
shocking, to see financial buyers reach the same conclusion. Microsoft's
interest in expanding its influence in home entertainment has been evident for
quite some time. Microsoft hopes that its Comcast investment will give it more
clout with the cable companies while simultaneously giving it a better return
than it was previously getting from its $9 billion in cash.
The critical question for us, of course, is "what next?" I do not believe
that these events represent the end of the investment opportunity in these
industries. There remains considerable skepticism in the investment community
about the prospects of both cellular and cable. Valuations, while no longer at
the extremely depressed levels of earlier this year, remain low. I am no longer
buying cable and cellular stocks aggressively, but I am a long way from being
ready to reduce our investment in these industries.
4
<PAGE>
I made no major changes to our portfolio during the quarter. The single
largest new position added, Imperial Credit, was not really new. This stock had
been very profitable for us in 1995 and 1996, but I finished selling our
position last year because the stock had gone up so much that I felt that its
potential was no longer sufficient to justify its risk. However, the stock
market has given us a chance to double dip. Our purchase price this year was
almost 40 percent below our last sales price last year. Since the company's
operations have continued to do well, I felt the risk-reward relationship was
once again quite attractive.
As to the future, my crystal ball remains cloudy. When I last wrote to you
early in April, I suggested that we might be entering a period of below average
returns in the stock market. I think we can all safely conclude that my success
at predicting the short term direction of the broad stock market leaves
something to be desired. The S&P 500's return of 17.4% in the second quarter is
certainly not below average. Despite my lousy record as a stock market
forecaster, I will stick my neck out once again. Historical average annual stock
market returns are about 10 percent. Given the strength in the stock market the
last several years, coupled with my continued belief in reversion to the mean, I
remain convinced that the broad stock market averages will return less than 10
percent on average over the next several years.
Our stocks still look attractive to me, but you shouldn't be surprised
that I am less enthusiastic than I was three months ago. It is very hard for me
to believe that the underlying value of the businesses we own have gone up by 16
percent over the last three months. Nevertheless, in my view our companies
continue to be worth more than the stock market currently thinks, and their
prospects for increasing that value remain good. As I have said before, buying
growing value, priced at a discount, is an investment approach that should
continue to yield good results over the long run.
1997 SHAREHOLDERS' MEETING
On June 2, about 150 clients attended our shareholders' meeting. All of
the proposals regarding directors, auditors, by-laws and investment policies
were approved. After the official business portion of the meeting, Wally Weitz,
Tom Carney, and I answered investment questions for about an hour. We also
announced that we would offer a series of informal "classes" for interested
shareholders on "mutual fund basics," "how we pick stocks," and "planning for
retirement." The initial response was good, and we have already held the first
two sessions. If you are interested in finding out more about future classes,
please call Mary Bickels.
The shareholder meeting is a good chance to get together, meet the staff
and your fellow shareholders, and talk about investments. I hope you will be
able to join us next year.
Sincerely,
/s/ RICHARD LAWSON
Richard F. Lawson
Portfolio Manager
5
<PAGE>
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC. -- HICKORY PORTFOLIO
SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS IN SECURITIES
JUNE 30, 1997
(UNAUDITED)
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
SHARES
OR UNITS COST VALUE
- --------- ------------ ------------
<C> <S> <C> <C>
COMMON STOCKS -- 89.9%
BANKING -- 1.7%
1,000 Wells Fargo & Co. $ 88,506 $ 269,500
------------ ------------
CABLE TELEVISION -- 21.0%
37,000 Adelphia Communications Corp. CL A* 251,750 263,625
92,500 Century Communications Corp. CL A* 453,621 497,187
13,000 Comcast Corporation CL A 201,025 272,188
25,500 Comcast Corporation Special CL A 389,160 545,062
30,000 TCI Satellite Entertainment CL A* 250,697 236,250
40,000 Tele-Communications, Inc. CL A* 532,290 595,000
22,500 Tele-Communications Liberty Media CL A* 383,444 534,375
20,000 U.S. West Media Group* 366,200 405,000
------------ ------------
2,828,187 3,348,687
------------ ------------
CONSUMER PRODUCTS AND SERVICES -- 2.5%
37,000 American Classic Voyages Co.* 288,125 397,750
------------ ------------
DIVERSIFIED INDUSTRIES -- 0.9%
1,500 Lynch Corp.* 112,560 134,250
------------ ------------
FINANCIAL SERVICES -- 10.3%
22,000 Capital One Financial Corp. 613,781 830,500
15,000 Healthcare Financial Partners, Inc.* 187,500 305,625
25,000 Imperial Credit Industries, Inc.* 332,075 514,063
------------ ------------
1,133,356 1,650,188
------------ ------------
HEALTH CARE -- 2.5%
11,000 Seafield Capital Corp. 389,850 393,250
------------ ------------
MEDIA/OTHER -- 9.6%
50,000 Katz Media Group, Inc.* 408,668 328,125
50,000 Valassis Communications, Inc.* 742,213 1,200,000
------------ ------------
1,150,881 1,528,125
------------ ------------
MORTGAGE BANKING -- 7.5%
17,000 Countrywide Credit Industries, Inc. 259,020 530,187
5,000 New Century Financial Corp.* 55,000 72,500
30,305 Resource Bancshares Mtg. Grp., Inc. 320,743 598,524
------------ ------------
634,763 1,201,211
------------ ------------
</TABLE>
6
<PAGE>
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC. -- HICKORY PORTFOLIO
SCHEDULE OF INVESTMENTS IN SECURITIES, CONTINUED
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
SHARES
OR UNITS COST VALUE
- --------- ------------ ------------
<C> <S> <C> <C>
REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION -- 4.0%
9,000 Forest City Enterprises, Inc. CL A $ 197,678 $ 430,313
2,750 SLH Corp.* 52,662 211,750
------------ ------------
250,340 642,063
------------ ------------
REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS -- 10.1%
20,000 NovaStar Financial, Inc.** 300,000 300,000
28,078 Redwood Trust, Inc. 469,295 1,312,646
------------ ------------
769,295 1,612,646
------------ ------------
TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES -- 19.8%
35,000 360 Communication Co.* 729,530 599,375
10,000 Airtouch Communications, Inc.* 238,100 273,750
100,000 Centennial Cellular Corp. CL A* 1,214,569 1,587,500
5,000 CommNet Cellular, Inc.* 133,125 173,750
30,000 Corecomm, Inc.* 602,067 517,500
------------ ------------
2,917,391 3,151,875
------------ ------------
Total Common Stocks 10,563,254 14,329,545
------------ ------------
WARRANTS -- 4.5%
23,500 Redwood Trust, Inc., Expiring 12/31/97* 92,548 722,625
------------ ------------
<CAPTION>
FACE
AMOUNT
- ---------
<C> <S> <C> <C>
SHORT-TERM SECURITIES -- 5.9%
$ 946,963 Norwest U.S. Government Money Market Fund 946,963 946,963
------------ ------------
Total Investments in Securities $ 11,602,765 15,999,133
------------ ------------
------------
Other Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets -- (0.3%) (50,259)
------------
Total Net Assets -- 100% $ 15,948,874
------------
------------
Net Asset Value Per Share $ 20.706
------------
------------
</TABLE>
*Non-income Producing
**This restricted security, exempt from registration under the Securities Act of
1933, was purchased in a private placement and, unless registered under the Act
or exempted from registration, may only be sold to qualified institutional
investors or certain accredited investors.
7
<PAGE>
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEITZ SERIES FUND, INC.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Lorraine Chang
John W. Hancock
Richard D. Holland
Thomas R. Pansing, Jr
Delmer L. Toebben
Wallace R. Weitz
OFFICERS
Wallace R. Weitz, President
Mary K. Beerling, Vice-President & Secretary
Linda L. Lawson, Vice-President
Richard F. Lawson, Vice-President
INVESTMENT ADVISER
Wallace R. Weitz & Company
DISTRIBUTOR
Weitz Securities, Inc.
CUSTODIAN
Norwest Bank Nebraska, N.A.
TRANSFER AGENT AND DIVIDEND PAYING AGENT
Wallace R. Weitz & Company
This report has been prepared for the information of shareholders of Weitz
Series Fund, Inc. -- Hickory Portfolio. For more detailed information about the
Fund, its investment objectives, management, fees and expenses, please see a
current prospectus. This report is not authorized for distribution to
prospective investors unless preceded or accompanied by a current prospectus.
