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BRK hasn't paid a dividend in many decades
Warren Buffett's company rejects proposals, but it faces lawsuit over how it handled one last year
By: Yahoo | May 4, 2024
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Shareholder proposals are usually uneventful at Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting. But Warren Buffett and the company are now facing a lawsuit over the way one presenter was treated last year.
Peter Flaherty with the National Legal and Policy Center came back with another proposal this year on a different subject even after he was cut off in the middle of his presentation last year and arrested for trespassing. The charges were later dropped, but Flaherty decided to sue because of the way he was treated to stand up for any shareholder who wants to bring a proposal. He said he had never had trouble at dozens of meetings he has presented at since 2005, including Berkshire’s 2022 meeting.
“I’ve never been interrupted while making a shareholder presentation. I’ve never had my mic cut, and I’ve never been removed from a meeting room. And I’ve certainly never been arrested,” Flaherty said, “Those things were unprecedented for me.”
The issue last year was that Flaherty questioned the character of one of Buffett's best friends and a former Berkshire board member, Bill Gates. Flaherty suggested that Buffett's close association with Gates could hurt Berkshire's reputation because of reports that Gates had been associated with Jeffrey Epstein before he was arrested for sex trafficking. So he was proposing that Berkshire give someone else Buffett's chairman title while leaving him as CEO.
Buffett has donated billions to Gates’ foundation over the years and plans to give him the bulk of his fortune to distribute.
Berkshire didn't immediately respond to the federal lawsuit that was filed Friday, and it wasn't mentioned during Saturday's meeting. Berkshire officials didn't even address any of the proposals during the meeting — instead they relied on their statements of opposition that were filed in the official meeting proxy.
Buffett stayed silent during the business meeting after spending all day Saturday answering shareholder questions at the main part of the shareholder meeting. He let his eventual successor Vice Chairman Greg Abel take the lead. He only reminded the presenters of all six proposals to keep their comments related to the proposals.
Flaherty’s proposal was one of six rejected at Berkshire’s meeting this year. They were all opposed by the board, and Buffett still controls roughly one-third of the vote so anything he opposes is almost certain to fail. None of the proposals received more than 85,000 votes. Flaherty’s proposal only drew 6,150 votes while getting 443,544 votes against it.
Some of the other proposals rejected Saturday included ones to require Berkshire to create reports on climate change risks and diversity and inclusion efforts at the massive conglomerate. Another proposal would have required Berkshire to create a board committee focused on railroad safety.
The safety chief for the SMART-TD rail union that represents conductors and other rail workers, Jared Cassity, said that if BNSF wants to argue that safety is the railroad's top priority, Berkshire's board should focus on it and review staffing and operational practices to help prevent derailments like the disastrous one Norfolk Southern had last year in East Palestine, Ohio.
“Railroad safety requires effective board oversight,” Cassity said.
Berkshire argued that BNSF is already focused on improving safety and doesn't need more oversight.
With regard to the other proposals, Berkshire officials argued that such reports would be cumbersome because of the decentralized way the company is run and unnecessary. Plus, some of its subsidiaries like its massive utility unit already produce reports on greenhouse gas emissions, Berkshire said.
This year, Flaherty was allowed to make his case that Berkshire should produce a report on the risks of doing business in China, before the proposal was summarily rejected.
“China poses unique risks for Berkshire Hathaway,” Flaherty said, arguing that the company's existing disclosures about subsidiaries like Fruit of the Loom that have factories in China are inadequate.
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Berkshire Hathaway Inc reports results for the quarter ended in January - Earnings Summary
By: Reuters | May 6, 2024
• Berkshire Hathaway Inc BRK.A reported quarterly adjusted earnings of $7,796.47?? per share for the quarter ended in January, higher than the same quarter last year, when the company reported EPS of $5,537.48. The mean expectation of two analysts for the quarter was for earnings of $6,824.88 per share. Wall Street expected results to range from $6,294.00 to $7,355.76 per share.
Revenue rose 5.2% to $89.87 billion from a year ago; analysts expected $87.04 billion.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc's reported EPS for the quarter was $8,825.00?.
The company reported quarterly net income of $12.7 billion.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc shares had fallen by 5.0% this quarter and gained 11.1% so far this year.
FORECAST CHANGES
The mean earnings estimate of analysts had risen by about 2.2% in the last three months.?
In the last 30 days, there have been no negative revisions of earnings estimates
RECOMMENDATIONS
The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 1 "strong buy" or "buy," 1 "hold" and no "sell" or "strong sell."
The average consensus recommendation for the consumer goods conglomerates peer group is "hold."
Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Berkshire Hathaway Inc is $697,410.00
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DiscoverGold
The memorial video tribute to open the meeting was very impressive and moving.
Berkshire pares huge Apple stake as cash, operating profit set records
SHM: OMAHA, Neb. (Reuters) - "Berkshire Hathaway significantly reduced its enormous stake in Apple in the first quarter, as Warren Buffett's conglomerate let its cash hoard swell to a record $189 billion.
Buffett's company also posted a record operating profit exceeding $11 billion, as its insurance operations benefited from improved underwriting and higher income from investments as interest rates rose.Based on changes in Apple's stock price, Berkshire appears to have sold about 115 million shares, or 13% of its holdings, in the quarter, ending with about 790 million."
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/berkshire-posts-record-operating-profit-121448596.html.
What's Next for Berkshire Hathaway
By: Barron's | April 26, 2024
With CEO Warren Buffett, 93, headed for the end of his reign, questions are swirling about the company's future. The case for buying the stock now. By Andrew Bary
Warren Buffett will be at center stage, as usual, during Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting. But investors are increasingly looking for clues on what the company will be like when the longstanding CEO and chairman is no longer running it.
Berkshire could come under pressure to break itself up when the world's most acclaimed investor exits the stage. It might decide to pay a dividend rather than amass cash, as it does today while Buffett, 93, waits for investing opportunities. Buffett can expect to face questions on all these topics and more at the annual meeting on May 4 in Omaha, Neb.
Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's longtime friend, business partner, and Berkshire vice chairman, who died last year at 99, won't be at his side. Munger's absence will only reinforce the obvious: Buffett's time atop the conglomerate he built over six decades could end during the next few years. Even Buffett acknowledges as much, writing in November that he felt "good" but was "playing in extra innings."
For some 30,000 Berkshire shareholders expected to attend the meeting, the future will be the focus as Buffett fields questions for more than five hours in what could be his only public appearance of the year. Joining Buffett on the dais will be Vice Chairman Greg Abel, 61, likely tasked with the role of Buffett's successor as CEO, and Vice Chairman Ajit Jain, 72, who runs the company's insurance operations. Together they will answer questions small and large: Can the stock beat the S&P 500 index? Why have share repurchases declined since 2021? Can the company's new management prove anywhere as capable as Buffett? Should Berkshire break up?
But really, everyone will be focused on the same thing.
"Whether it's said out loud or not, succession is front and center on the minds of investors," says Cathy Seifert, a CFRA Research analyst.
There is nothing like Berkshire. It has had an extraordinary run since Buffett took control of a struggling textile maker in 1965 and turned it into the world's largest conglomerate, with nearly 400,000 employees and U.S.-centric businesses that offer one of the best reads on the health of the economy. Some of its largest divisions are the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad; Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which operates a multistate electric utility business that is one of the largest producers of green power in the country; and the world's biggest property and casualty insurer, including Geico, the No. 3 auto insurer.
There are smaller units, such as NetJets, the leader in private jet travel; Clayton Homes, the top maker of manufactured housing; Benjamin Moore paints; Dairy Queen; and one of the largest real estate brokerage businesses in the country. Then there is a $360 billion equity portfolio led by Apple, which accounts for about 40% of Berkshire's holdings. There also is what Buffett calls a Fort Knox balance sheet, with nearly $170 billion in cash and equivalents.
Berkshire isn't run like other conglomerates. It is unusually decentralized, with Buffett leaving key decisions at subsidiaries largely to the managers of the individual companies. He wrote in the Berkshire "Owner's Manual" in 2017 that "we delegate almost to the point of abdication." Berkshire has a tiny headquarters staff of 26 with no corporate counsel, investor relations, or public relations staff.
Berkshire's unusual strategy has worked. The company is expected to generate $40 billion of after-tax operating earnings this year and has a market capitalization of $880 billion, the seventh-largest in the stock market. The company's Class A stock has risen to over $600,000 a share from $20 (there have been no stock splits along the way) since Buffett took over in 1965, and holders who bought the now widely held Class B shares when they were created in 1996 have seen that stock rise 20-fold. It's one of the most widely held stocks by individuals, with some three million shareholders. Probably no other company elicits the passion and loyalty of its investor base. Big institutions have never appreciated the stock as much as individuals.
But will they continue to, once Buffett is no longer running the show? So central is Buffett to Berkshire's business that four or five people will take over the role that he maintained until 2018, when he delegated responsibility for Berkshire's non-insurance businesses to Abel and the insurance operations to Jain.
Abel is due to become CEO, which involves overseeing Berkshire's vast array of businesses and likely determining capital allocation, a critical role at the company that Buffett has performed so well for nearly 60 years. That means deciding whether to use earnings to repurchase stock, pay dividends, build cash, or make acquisitions. Jain is likely to remain head of the insurance business, while Buffett's older son, Howard, 69, a farmer and philanthropist, probably will become nonexecutive chairman.
Then there are Todd Combs, 53, and Ted Weschler, 61, who now run about 10% of Berkshire's equity investments and probably will run the entire portfolio. Berkshire doesn't say which stocks in the equity portfolio are run by Combs and Weschler, but Berkshire watchers think that many of the smaller holdings — under $4 billion — are theirs. These include Charter Communications, DaVita, Liberty Sirius XM, Amazon.com, Snowflake, Visa, and Mastercard. Buffett hasn't commented on their performance relative to the market since 2019 — when he said they were slightly behind it since joining the company more than a decade ago. We estimate that both are probably lagging behind the market since their tenures began, given the underperformance of some of their rumored holdings in recent years.
Investment manager Bill Smead, who heads the Smead Value fund, would like to hear from Combs and Weschler. "Not introducing Todd and Ted is an unforgivable sin. If Warren dies tomorrow, they are the stockpickers, and they have never answered or been asked a question at the annual meeting."
Combs is a key member of the Berkshire bench and could be a backup to Abel as the Buffett successor or a potential successor to Abel as CEO. Combs has a good rapport with Buffett and has experience beyond investments as CEO of Geico for past four years and as a JPMorgan Chase board member. One candidate to succeed Jain as head of the insurance operations is Joe Brandon, who runs Alleghany, an insurer that Berkshire bought in 2022.
Buffett's three children, Howard, Susan, and Peter, will be in the mix after Buffett's death since they will oversee a charitable trust that will hold Buffett's now 15% economic stake in Berkshire, which has voting power of over 30% because it consists almost entirely of supervoting A shares. The Buffett stake will allow the children to wield considerable power, at least for several years, as the trust will liquidate over about a decade.
While Buffett acknowledges that he has slowed down in recent years, he looked sharp at the 2023 meeting. He talked for five hours, fortified with a Coke and peanut brittle from See's Candies, a Berkshire company. He showed command of all things Berkshire, the economy, and financial markets, both past and present. He is the last of a breed. Three years ago, there were four Berkshire directors age 90 or over — all longtime friends of Buffett — and they all are dead: Munger, David "Sandy" Gottesman, Tom Murphy, and Walter Scott. Smead says that without the outspoken Munger to prod him, Buffett may be more restrained at this year's meeting.
That won't stop investors from peppering him with questions. How long do you expect to run the company? What do Berkshire's slowing stock repurchases say about your views on the stock? Can Geico, which has slipped behind Progressive in auto insurance market share and technology, catch up? Would Berkshire walk away from its Western utilities and let them go bankrupt in the face of wildfire liabilities? Do you think it will make sense to pay a dividend once you're gone?
Buffett says he expects tough questions. "That's the way we like it," he wrote earlier this year.
"There will be more discussion of the possibility of a dividend at some point in time," says Ted Bridges, CEO of Bridges Trust, an Omaha investment manager. Buffett has conceded that buying public and private businesses is tough now, given higher valuations. And Berkshire handicaps itself by refusing to participate in corporate auctions. The dividend issue arouses passion among many individual Berkshire holders who don't want them, in part for tax reasons.
An important question, asked or not, is what will happen to Berkshire shares when Buffett steps down or dies. They may take a hit of perhaps 5% to 10%, as longtime holders cash out and investors worry that the Buffett magic will disappear. Buffett, though, has said he thinks the stock will go up on the day after his death as investors anticipate a value-enhancing corporate breakup.
There's a case to be made for a breakup. It's the world's biggest conglomerate at a time when conglomerates have fallen out of favor, with the likes of General Electric and United Technologies having broken up in recent years. For all of Buffett's investment acumen and business smarts, Berkshire stock is about even with the S&P 500 as measured by total return over the past 10 years and 20 years, Bloomberg calculations show. The stock has returned 12.4% annually over the past 10 years, against 12.5% for the S&P 500. Buffett has said that Berkshire needs to top it over time or investors should consider looking elsewhere.
All the massive outperformance came in Buffett's first 40 years at the helm, when the company was smaller and Buffett had a particularly hot investment hand, scooping up big stakes in companies like Coca-Cola and American Express at cheap prices. Size, too, is an impediment to outsize returns.
Buffett hasn't had a lot of new winners in the past decade. The company's largest acquisition — the 2016 purchase of Precision Castparts for $33 billion — has been a bust. Buffett has had some misses in the stock market, selling a group of financial stocks including Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase in 2020 and 2021 at about half their current prices. Of course, Apple has been a huge win with Berkshire's stake, now worth over $150 billion, compared with a cost of around $30 billion. But the iPhone giant is having a rough 2024, and its stock is down more than10% year to date.
Berkshire shares look like a good bet to match or beat the S&P 500 even after Buffett leaves the scene. The stock now looks appealing, valued at 1.5 times its projected March 31 book value of nearly $400,000 per Class A share and for 22 times estimated 2024 earnings. (Berkshire is due to report its first-quarter results on May 4.) Berkshire is slightly expensive relative to its five-year average of 1.4 times book value. The stock is ahead of the market this year and over the past five years.
Book value is an old-fashioned valuation measure but is still relevant for Berkshire because of its large insurance operations — insurers still get valued on book — and because it has been a historical yardstick for the company since Buffett took over.
Buffett chooses to focus on intrinsic value but doesn't disclose his estimate of that figure. Buffett has said that book value is a greatly understated proxy for intrinsic value, although share repurchases at current prices do reduce book value, somewhat undercutting the use of that measurement.
Post Buffett, Berkshire's stock is likely to be supported by steady growth in its earnings and shareholder equity over time. The company appears capable of high-single-digit annual growth in book value based on $40 billion of operating income after taxes and gains in the $360 billion equity portfolio. If the stock keeps pace with the growth in book value, it could show similar share price growth.
A dividend is a good bet within a few years of Buffett's death. Why? It will help his successor disburse some of the annual operating earnings. Another reason is that investors won't be so tolerant of Berkshire holding so much cash — a record $168 billion at year-end 2023 — without Buffett at the helm.
Christopher Bloomstran, chief investment strategist at Semper Augustus Investment Group, wrote earlier this year that Berkshire stock could generate a 10% to 11% annualized return over the next 10 years, with annual share buybacks in the 2% to 3% range — above the recent rate of 1% to 1.5%. He pegged intrinsic value at around $720,000 a share.
UBS analyst Brian Meredith is one of the few Berkshire bulls among Wall Street analysts. He recently lifted his price target to about $722,000 per Class A share from $715,000. He sees improvement at both Geico and Burlington Northern. Berkshire is one of the most defensive big stocks in the market, given its balance sheet and earnings power. A market selloff could offer opportunities for Buffett.
Buffett is firmly against a breakup. He argues the conglomerate structure has numerous attributes, including tax benefits from the ability to quickly make use of any big catastrophe losses at Berkshire's insurance companies. Buffett has expressed confidence in the company's future, writing last year that "Berkshire has been built to last." And the company's Buffett-friendly 14-member board — including two of Buffett's kids — is well aware of his views.
"Berkshire has been run with enormous transparency, integrity, a long-term orientation, and a culture of stewardship. It is run by the greatest investor in history. That's the present," Chris Davis, an investment manager and Berkshire board member, told Barron's last year . "As for the future, every activist and investment banker will argue that in a world without Warren and Charlie, Berkshire's unorthodox structure shouldn't persist. I think it's worth defending."
Whatever the questions, Berkshire shareholders will savor the annual meeting, knowing there may not be many more with Buffett at the helm. As for the stock, many may heed the advice of Munger, who said that "they should keep the faith" rather than sell after he and Buffett are gone.
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Yes, I've long wanted to see a study of how Buffett's discards perform.
Bar, Those allegations against Globe Life do sound serious. The stock is staging a nice recovery, but still down by 1/3 or so. I guess the moral of the story is that when Buffett exits a stock completely, it's probably best to follow his lead. But there are a bunch of stocks that Buffett sold out of last year that I decided to keep for the longer term --> DHI, GL, MKL, MMC, JNJ, MDLZ, PG. So far only GL has blown up, but luckily only a small position. Still unnerving to watch though.
>>> Globe Life profit surges on strong underwriting, investment returns
Reuters
Apr 22, 2024
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/globe-life-profit-surges-strong-210636532.html
April 22 (Reuters) - Globe Life posted a rise in first-quarter profit on Monday as the insurer benefited from strong investment returns and underwriting activities.
The insurance industry, known for its resilience to economic downturns, sustains a stable demand for policies, with both corporate and government spending on insurance remaining steady.
Total premiums at Globe Life rose to $1.15 billion in the first quarter from $1.10 billion a year ago.
The surge in the broader equity capital markets on the other hand has enhanced investment income for insurers, who diversify a portion of their cash across various asset classes.
Globe Life's net investment income for the quarter increased about 10% to $282.6 million.
The company's net operating income for the three months ended March 31 came in at $2.78 per share, compared with $2.53 per share in the prior-year quarter.
Globe Life expects its operating income for the year to be between $11.50 to $12.00 per share. The insurer further expects to resume share buybacks once the blackout period related to a potential acquisition ends for the first quarter.
Earlier this month, Fuzzy Panda Research disclosed a short position in the company, citing numerous cases of insurance fraud, leading Globe Life's shares to drop to their lowest in over a decade.
Globe Life denied the allegations, saying "the short seller analysis by Fuzzy Panda Research mischaracterizes facts and uses unsubstantiated claims and conjecture to present an overall picture of Globe Life that is deliberately false."
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Globe Life is a mess. Several there will be going to prison.
>>> Billionaire Warren Buffett Recently Cut This Stock From Berkshire Hathaway's Portfolio. It Just Dropped 53% In 1 Day. Here's What Investors Need to Know.
by Courtney Carlsen
Motley Fool
Apr 17, 2024
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/billionaire-warren-buffett-recently-cut-101500983.html
Globe Life (NYSE: GL) stock plummeted by more than 53% in a single day last week after short-seller Fuzzy Panda Research accused the life insurance company of fraud. The claims piled onto the already struggling stock, which had previously been a longtime holding of Warren Buffett's conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B).
If you're thinking about buying the dip in the stock, there are some things you'll want to know.
Globe Life's troubles began last year
Globe Life was one of Berkshire Hathaway's longest-held investments, having been part of the conglomerate's portfolio for more than two decades. Berkshire held Globe Life through several difficult economic periods, including the COVID-19 pandemic, which put tremendous pressure on life insurers by elevating claims costs.
Buffett examines a management team's character and trustworthiness when investing. Buffett and his team have an excellent track record of evaluating management, which is a big reason for the conglomerate's long-term success. When Globe Life became the subject of several lawsuits accusing it of misconduct, Berkshire pulled the plug on its investment.
Last year, two Globe Life subsidiaries, American Income Life Insurance Co. and Arias Agencies, faced a lawsuit accusing them of inappropriate workplace conduct; this included rampant drug use, sexual abuse, and degradation of agents who didn't hit sales targets.
Globe Life's struggles continued when a former executive claimed he was fired for blowing the whistle on "potentially illegal" sales practices at the subsidiary. It appears that the accusations were why Berkshire sold its stake in the insurer last year.
Here's what short seller Fuzzy Panda had to say about the insurer
Fast-forward to this year, and Globe Life's troubles have gone from bad to worse. On March 6, the U.S. Department of Justice issued subpoenas to Globe Life and American Income Life. The subpoena is part of an investigation into allegations of fraud and misconduct at the (renamed) Arias Organization, now one of American Income Life's agencies.
Last week, the dam broke after short-seller Fuzzy Panda Research accused Globe Life of "extensive" insurance fraud that was ignored by management. According to Breakout Point and reported by Bloomberg, Fuzzy Panda Research was the best-performing active short-seller in 2023. Although short-sellers -- investors who try to profit from falling share prices -- suffered deep losses during the long bull market of the 2010s, they can help expose harmful or downright fraudulent business practices.
Fuzzy Panda reviewed hundreds of court documents and interviewed former executives and agents "who showed us where the fraud was hidden." According to the short-seller, the fraud was ignored by management despite being "obvious and reported hundreds of times." After the short report was released, Globe Life's stock plummeted 53% in a single day.
Following the serious accusations from Fuzzy Panda, Globe Life responded by saying:
We reviewed the report and found it to be wildly misleading, mixing anonymous allegations with recycled points pushed by plaintiff law firms to coerce Globe Life into settlements ... The short seller analysis by Fuzzy Panda Research mischaracterizes facts and uses unsubstantiated claims and conjecture to present an overall picture of Globe Life that is deliberately false, misleading and defamatory.
Buy the dip?
According to The Fly, analysts believe the stock sell-off is overdone, but big question marks remain. Investment bank and investment firm Piper Sandler said that Globe Life's response "serves to assuage concerns but does not completely remove the vacuum that remains absent a broader communication about this matter with the investment community."
Another investment firm, Evercore, meanwhile, sees limited downside from here but says there is still "significant uncertainty for the shares."
Globe Life faces serious allegations, and the stock price reflects this. After its significant sell-off, aggressive investors may find the stock ripe for the picking. If you're willing to tolerate this risk, though, don't bet more than you're willing to lose.
However, given the uncertainty around the situation and the Department of Justice's investigation, most investors are better off waiting to see how things shake out; they should avoid the stock for now.
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Berkshire Hathaway Currently Down Seven Consecutive Days, on Pace for Longest Losing Streak Since December 2018
By: Dow Jones Market Data | April 16, 2024
• Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Class B (BRKB) is currently at $399.11, down $1.15 or 0.29%
- Would be lowest close since Feb. 14, 2024, when it closed at $398.68
- Currently down eight of the past nine days
- Currently down seven consecutive days; down 4.66% over this period
- Longest losing streak since Dec. 24, 2018, when it fell for eight straight trading days
- Worst seven day stretch since the seven days ending Oct. 4, 2023, when it fell 4.98%
- Down 5.09% month-to-date
- Up 11.9% year-to-date
- Down 5.09% from its all-time closing high of $420.52 on March 28, 2024
- Up 22.94% from 52 weeks ago (April 18, 2023), when it closed at $324.63
- Down 5.09% from its 52-week closing high of $420.52 on March 28, 2024
- Up 25.11% from its 52-week closing low of $319.02 on May 25, 2023
- Traded as low as $397.23; lowest intraday level since Feb. 14, 2024, when it hit $393.55
- Down 0.76% at today's intraday low
All data as of 10:58:56 AM ET
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DiscoverGold
Warren has to be loving BRK's huge and growing investment in OXY shares this week, and over the past month or so for that matter.
>>> Apple’s first quarter has felt more like an entire (bad) year
Yahoo Finance
Daniel Howley
Mar 27, 2024
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apples-first-quarter-has-felt-more-like-an-entire-bad-year-201715880.html?.tsrc=fin-notif
Apple (AAPL) is in the midst of what you could generously call a “difficult” period. The company is contending with a high-profile antitrust battle with the Department of Justice, falling iPhone sales in China, and a regulatory investigation in the European Union. And those are just the headlines from the past week.
The company is also still facing a shortfall when it comes to generative AI capabilities. And while it’s widely expected to debut some kind of generative AI offering during its WWDC developer event on June 10, it’ll need to have quite an impressive showing if it’s going to catch up to its Big Tech rivals including Microsoft (MSFT) and Google (GOOG, GOOGL).
All of that is hurting Apple’s stock price. Shares of the iPhone maker have fallen more than 7% since the start of the year and are up just 6.25% over the last 12 months. Shares of Microsoft, meanwhile, are up 14% year to date and 49% over the last 12 months. Google? Shares of the search giant are up 9% year to date and 43% in the last 12 months.
Suffice it to say, Apple’s 2024 is not going well.
Apple’s China problem
Apple’s latest headache came Tuesday, when Bloomberg, citing Chinese government data, reported that iPhone shipments fell 33% year over year in the country in February.
China is Apple’s third-largest market behind North America and Europe. In 2023, the region accounted for $72.6 billion of Apple’s $383.3 billion in total revenue. That’s roughly 19% of the company’s sales.
And this isn’t exactly out of the blue. Earlier this month, Counterpoint Research reported that iPhone sales fell 24% year over year through the first six weeks of 2024 in the country. Overall smartphone unit sales in China declined 7% during the same period.
Apple has been aggressively expanding in China for years, but a resurgent Huawei and difficult economic conditions in the country are squeezing device sales. The company isn’t just sitting idly by, though. Last week, CEO Tim Cook flew to China for the opening of the company’s latest flagship store in Shanghai. He also attended the China Development Forum in Beijing and was expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
According to the South China Morning Post, Apple-authorized retailers are also trying to goose sales, cutting the price of the company’s latest iPhones in the hopes that it will get consumers to start buying again. However, it might take more than lower prices to make that happen.
A battle with the DOJ
Outside of Apple’s China sales drama, the company is also facing its long-anticipated antitrust fight with the Department of Justice. The lawsuit, which the DOJ filed last Thursday, accuses Apple of illegally maintaining dominance over the premium smartphone market by pushing aside competing apps and devices.
The Justice Department claims that Apple imposes restrictions on app developers, makes it difficult for users to switch to competing platforms, and hinders cloud gaming and so-called super apps that allow users to access multiple smaller apps from one larger platform.
Apple, however, is fighting back, saying in a statement that the suit "threatens who we are and the principles that set Apple products apart in fiercely competitive markets. If successful, it would hinder our ability to create the kind of technology people expect from Apple."
The DOJ is seeking to force Apple to change its business practices, which could mean giving third-party apps greater access to the company’s platforms and requiring Apple to expand compatibility with third-party device makers.
The lawsuit could also prove to be a dangerous distraction for Apple similar to how Microsoft’s antitrust battle in the 90’s stole executives’ attention away from emerging technologies like smartphones. If Microsoft hadn’t been so invested in its antitrust fight at the time, there’s a good chance it would have seen the smartphone age coming as did Apple and Google, and launched its own line of handsets.
European Commission calling
In addition to slowing iPhone sales in China and the DOJ’s antitrust suit, the European Union’s competition watchdog, the European Commission on Monday, announced that it is looking into whether Apple is in compliance with the bloc’s Digital Markets Act.
In a statement released Monday, the Commission said it is investigating Apple’s new app fee structure in the EU as well as whether it meets user choice obligations related to default apps and the ability to delete preinstalled apps.
The Digital Markets Act requires Apple to open up the iPhone to third-party app stores, enabling developers to get around the 30% and 15% fees the company charges for sales through its own App Store. While Apple said it will allow those third-party stores, the company said it will also charge developers a 50 euro cent Core Technology Fee per install per year on apps that have been installed more than 1 million times in the last 12 months.
In a statement, the EC said it is looking into whether Apple’s new fees defeat the purpose of the obligations of the Digital Markets Act.
While Apple is certainly facing a slew of challenges, it’s far from down and out. It’s still the second-richest company in the world by market capitalization — behind Microsoft — and it’s sure to continue to sell millions of devices and services subscriptions throughout the year ahead.
Still, for the foreseeable future, Apple could be in for a bumpy ride.
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Smart post. I wasn't thrilled with BRK having all that Apple. Diversification is important to me but somehow BRK is still rising. Now at $420. Small caps and even microcaps are up today.
"Also, looks like the bull market is broadening out to the mid and small caps, so a good sign" Probably. My individual stocks have been fairly subdued but my Index funds are all near highs. Overall, I'm content
Plus beautiful weather here today. I'm going to take a long walk. Later...
Bar, >> BRK near record high <<
Yes, and that's with APPL down almost 15% from its Dec high. So having so much in AAPL hasn't been a problem for Berkshire so far. While Apple is getting hit with anti-trust problems, so are the other big Techs like GOOG, META, but they remain resilient.
Also, looks like the bull market is broadening out to the mid and small caps, so a good sign. I sill worry about the geopolitical / war related risks, plus the US election, but with the Fed planning 3 rate cuts this year, that should be a nice tailwind for the markets. Lots of potential landmines, but as the old saying goes - 'bull markets climb a wall of worry'.
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Yep, I had a hefty increase on both home and auto coverage (and I don't live in Florida).
Noticing that BRK is essentially at record high right now. My kids are sorta mad at me because I didn't buy them any BRK years ago. But their index funds are doing great too.
Bar, In addition to TRV, the insurance sector as a whole has been on a tear. TRV up almost 50% since Oct (!), PGR is zooming, and the Insurance ETF (KIE) is also up a bunch. There's bound to be a consolidation at some point, but insurance companies have reportedly been able to raise their rates a lot lately, so profits have risen at a nice clip.
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Tea time for Buffett? $BRK.B
By: TrendSpider | March 27, 2024
• Tea time for Buffett? $BRK.B
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Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway $BRK.B just filed for its purchase of additional shares of Libertry Media
By: Evan | March 25, 2024
• Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway $BRK.B just filed for its purchase of additional shares of Libertry Media.
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>>> Berkshire Hathaway Energy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkshire_Hathaway_Energy
Company type Subsidiary
Predecessor MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company
Headquarters Des Moines, Iowa
Key people
Greg Abel (Chairman)
William J. Fehrman (CEO & President)
Revenue Increase $25.15 billion (2021)[1]
Operating income Increase $4.25 billion (2012)[2]
Net income Increase $2.57 billion (2012)[2]
Owner Berkshire Hathaway (92%)
Walter Scott Jr. family (8%)
Parent Berkshire Hathaway
Website www.brkenergy.com
Berkshire Hathaway Energy (previously known as MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company until 2014) is a holding company and subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, which owns 92% of the company. Berkshire has owned a controlling stake since 1999.[3] The company also controls power distribution companies in the United Kingdom and Canada.[4] The remaining 8% is owned by the family of Walter Scott Jr.[5]
Greg Abel serves as chairman. Scott W. Thon is president and CEO. David L. Sokol was CEO until 2008.
Until 2014, it was known as MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company from its root as MidAmerican Energy Company; it took on the name of its parent to reflect the diversity of its portfolio.[6]
As of 2019, BHE "serves 4.9 million retail customers, generates 29 gigawatts of power and transports 8.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day over 16,400 miles of regulated pipeline."[4]
In 2023, a jury ordered BHE subsidiary PacifiCorp to pay $70 million in punitive damages to 17 homeowners negatively impacted by wildfires that afflicted Oregon in 2020.[7]
Subsidiaries & investments
Berkshire Hathaway Energy owns the following companies:
- MidAmerican Energy Company
- MidAmerican Renewables[8] (Renewable Energy/Wind Energy)
- PacifiCorp, purchased for $9.4 billion in 2005[9]
- Northern Powergrid (formerly CE Electric UK)
- Integrated Utility Services UK
- CalEnergy Generation
- Imperial Valley Geothermal Project
- Kern River Gas Transmission Company[10]
- Kern River Pipeline
- Northern Natural Gas Company (Omaha)[11]
- BYD Company (19.92% of outstanding shares)[12]
- NV Energy (electricity and natural gas in most of Nevada)
- Metalogic Inspections Services[13] (Oil and Gas, Power Generation, Fabrication, Pipeline, Services)
- Intelligent Energy Solutions[14] (Heat Pumps, Solar Panels, and Biomass Boilers)
- AltaLink (Electric Utility in Canada) for C$3.24 billion in 2014 [15]
In 2017, BHE's proposed acquisition of Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC[16] was terminated after BHE was outbid by Sempra.[17][18]
BHE investigates producing up to 90 thousand tonnes of lithium carbonate per year (and other minerals) from its 350 MW geothermal power plants in the Lithium Valley next to the Salton Sea in California.[19][20]
<<<
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Bar, Yes, I doubt Buffett would be interesting in the cannabis sector under any circumstances because of ethical reasons, plus it would be a bad move from a public relations standpoint. But Ben Graham would probably be all over those stocks, if he believed the value was there.
I haven't followed the sector closely, but I think one of the problems is overproduction - they just cranked out too much supply, but there are probably a lot of other problems. The one pot related stock I'm considering is Scotts Miracle Gro (SMG). They have their regular lawn + garden business, but also a Hawthorne unit which is a big supplier for the cannabis industry, hydroponics, etc. They may be spinning it out as a separate unit (?), but if the broader cannabis sector finally recovers, I figure SMG should be a beneficiary, and they have their traditional business, so it's a low risk way to play it, SMG had been a nice long term buy / hold prior to it being caught in the cannabis vortex. Anyway, getting exposure to the pot sector is not a high priority imo, but maybe a small position might make sense.
Fwiw, in keeping with the Buffet / Munger focus on great stocks at a discount, I've taken some small positions in stocks that have been strong long term holdings, but have run into some headwinds. I remember Buffett saying that he largely avoids turnarounds 'because they rarely turn around', but most of these are more 'contrarian values', rather than deep turnarounds. Here are some current ideas (link below), and additional ideas are welcome :o) The ones highlighted in red I have, but only small positions -
Contrarian Value Ideas -
https://investorshub.advfn.com/Contrarian-Value-Ideas-30183
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In early 2021 I created a Finviz "paper portfolio" of MJ stocks. It performed atrociously, but I just glanced at it and see that some of those stocks have had a good run recently.
I wouldn't buy any of those crap "stoner" stocks and I doubt Charlie or Warren would either. No one gets into MJ cultivation to work hard for investors.
Bar, >> never chase fads whether it be marijuana or EVs <<
Actually the 'stoner stocks' may have finally put in a bottom. Still early, but the stars and planets could be aligning. The FDA just came out in favor of re-scheduling cannabis from Sch 1 to Sch 3, Germany just legalized recreational use, and both Dem and Rep leadership in the US want to see regular bank type funding for the cannabis industry. Meanwhile, for better or worse, psychedelics are rapidly being legalized as 'medicinal treatments'.
The Libertarian side of me says OK, but because this push toward broad legalization and acceptance is coming from what we used to call 'The Establishment', it's hard not to suspect a malevolent motivation underlying it all, beyond the usual profit motive. Anyway, if Ben Graham was around today, with his 'last puff' brand of extreme value / vulture investing, he would likely be kicking the tires and looking for values within this devastated sector.
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Yes, homes aren't great investments for many people in all decades but they often work out very well in the extreme long run. For one thing, most people buy AND hold their homes and don't panic and sell whenever headlines turn scary. Selling a home and moving to another is too hard and too costly. Munger has talked about that.
Like I've often said, cheap online stock trading that came in the 1990s actually hurt most investors. I still invest like it's 1970 and so should most people.
"You were serious minded about investing from the start, so a big plus. And you didn't waver from that approach,. Contrast that with the average IHUB stock gambler who has a new investing "method" every time the wind blows. My method is always, "buy quality and diversify." I never chase fads whether ii be marijuana or EVs or meme junk.
Correction: I raised it to $10 Million recently due to inflation.
Bar, >> preserve and grow wealth <<
You were serious minded about investing from the start, so a big plus. And you didn't waver from that approach, which is unusual, but has really paid off. I also started out conservative, but eventually went astray and succumbed to the allure of fast riches, but eventually returned to a more reasoned approach. So better late than never, lol. I still regret not owning more real estate, but having that big mortgage never felt right. But in retrospect, more people have reliably built wealth by owning their home than from the stock market.
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When I penned my first list of about 15 investing rules, my recommended minimum Mkt cap was $5 million. I raised it to $10 recently due to inflation. Most of my stocks are much bigger than that. Depends a lot on how much pain one is willing to suffer in the inevitable drawdowns and bear markets.
Bar, >> market caps over $10 billion <<
Yes, a good strategy. While I have a bunch of them under $10 bil (link below), anything under $1 bil is rare. Currently only one - Climb Global Solutions (CLMB), which I found largely from it's nice 10-15 year chart, which is very rare for a microcap. The last one was Winmark (WINA), but it's now over $1 bil.
Looking at how Buffett, Munger, and Graham approached investing in the early days, what jumps out is how aggressive they were. But Buffett says for us regular investors (mere mortals), the idea is to be extremely diversified, and mainly use index funds. So basically the opposite of his own 'Oracle' approach. I figure some individual stocks are OK, but only small positions and widely diversified.
Buy / Hold Stocks (by market cap) -
https://investorshub.advfn.com/Buy-Hold-Stocks-42434
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GFP I knew this Munger-ism decades before Charlie made it famous:
"'You gotta do it': the late Charlie Munger once said your first $100K is the toughest to earn — but most crucial for building wealth."
The tax law was once quite favorable to putting money in a kid's name. And I took advantage of that by opening a low cost Vanguard brokerage account for each of my sons soon after they were born. Both accounts were populated with the Vanguard Total Market Stock index mutual fund (there were no ETFs then). I or grandparents may have added a little more money as time went on, but I never sold. And I paid for their educations through college.
Hence, the day the kids graduated college both had a good notion of how to preserve wealth and how to grow it.
LOL and bookmarked! Thanks GFP. I'm a huge fan of of the crusty Charlie Munger but I never knew of his early involvement with hamsters. Our family went two rounds with them. Damn it was hard to keep the little critters in their place. They'd get out of their aquarium and we'd eventually find them sometimes weeks later in the middle of the night waddling across the floor.
Fortunately I parted with Munger over his extreme love of banking stocks. I've never bought one but did inherit two, Regions and BOA, about 20 year ago... stinkin' investments.
Yes, BABYF is utter junk with *ALL* the earmarks of a rubbish foreign penny stock. Note BABYF has a tiny market cap of just $31 million. I advise shunning stocks with market caps under $10 billion! BABYF is unprofitable and pays no dividend. And its lone product, "toddler food," has no moat or brand recognition, a floorless stock.
How Warren Buffett Made His First $1,000,000 -
History of Charlie Munger, and how he made his first $1,000,000 -
Thanks, watched it all. "Security Analysis" by Ben Graham is one of the few stock market classics I've never read. I have skimmed major parts of it. Much is quite dated and inappropriate for today's average investor.
In that YT video we again see the outsized role one stock, Geico, played, in the wealth of Buffett, Munger and Graham.
Here's an interesting history of Ben Graham, with Buffett entering the picture at 23:45. These guys wheeled + dealed on steroids, the antithesis of index investing. But.. they were smart enough to do it (unlike the rest of us 99.9%) -
This somewhat obscure Buffett quote is one of my favorites:
"On my honeymoon I traveled out west. When I visited the casino and saw all these smart well-dressed people participating in a game with the odds against them, it was then that I realized I won't have a problem getting rich!."
"Meanwhile, others were placing money on bets guaranteed to lose. These weren't dumb people -- they had money to blow in Las Vegas, after all -- but they weren't playing to win. They were playing games of chance where they were almost guaranteed to lose."
https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/22/warrenbuffettgambling.aspx#:~:text=On%20my%20honeymoon%20I%20traveled,a%20defining%20moment%20for%20Buffett.
Bar, Travelers is a great one for sure. Buffett trimmed / sold some of his insurance related holdings like AON, GL, MKL, MMC, which seemed somewhat surprising since they are such great long term holdings. Fwiw I decided to keep those for the long haul, but they are modest sized positions. Here's my full list for the financial sector (link below), with the actual holdings highlighted in red. Additional suggestions are welcome :o)
https://investorshub.advfn.com/Financial-Sector-Ideas-25505
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Bar, >> charts <<
Using CTAS as an example, just check out their 10 and 15 year chart over on Stockcharts.com (link below). That's one phenomenal chart and company --> unbelievable steadiness and trajectory. A lot of insurance related stocks (Buffett's favorite sector) have similarly phenomenal long term charts -- MMC, PGR, AJG, BRO, etc.
Anyway, it's a great screening tool - just find a bunch of companies with long term charts that look like CTAS, MMC, PGR, and the odds are you have some great long term holdings -
https://stockcharts.com/h-sc/ui
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"Speaking of which, I see Apple is under anti-trust investigation by the US govt." I guess that may explain the sell-off in BRK today. That was one case where WB found a stock with too big a moat. LOL!
As you know I don't use charts or T/A to trade stocks. I pay no attention to silly chart patterns. But, like you, I'll go back a long way to see how the stock performed in tough times especially during the Great Recession of 2008-9. A big dividend isn't important. However I like to see regular increases that roughly keep up with inflation or exceed it. That's a sign the books are kept honestly.
Bar, >> is this a stock Warren or Charlie would buy? <<
I ask that question too, but not having Buffett's stock analysis abilities (or anything close), I end up screening individual stocks mainly based on their 10-15 year charts. Does the chart have the steadiness and trajectory over time that would indicate a stable, consistently profitable business, and sound capable management? When the long term chart qualifies (CTAS for example), the rest of the analysis is usually favorable (margins, return on equity / assets, debt level, net income, cash flow, lack of shorts, div payout %, etc). But I figure Buffett would reject most of my picks based on valuation.
Buffett says a big problem is that the group of stocks qualifying for purchase by Berkshire is very limited, and they've been thoroughly picked over by others looking for the same type of bargains, hence Berkshire's huge cash position. The problem stems from his success --> having so much $ to invest means only the largest cap companies can be considered. If Buffett could go back to managing smaller sums, he could shoot the lights out every year like in the early days. But now he is forced into large and mega cap ideas.
Speaking of which, I see Apple is under anti-trust investigation by the US govt (link below). So that's the risk of having so much invested in one stock -
>>> Justice Department files antitrust suit against Apple <<<
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/justice-department-files-antitrust-suit-against-apple-145514025.html
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That post shows you know the smart way to invest but you often stray!
I always tell my two sons that investing SHOULD be boring. When deciding between two courses, go for the boring one. The problem I have now is my kids aren't interested in stocks. They've always had money. They're content to let Dad handle the investing. They know I've generally done well in the market and certainly better than their 30-ish year old friends, who mostly chase fads like many new investors.
A key question is WHY do index funds outperform most active management. Index funds don't fall for fads. They don't panic when headlines turn ugly. They don't chase the latest cool gadget (like VTOL). They're tax efficient by trading very little. Index funds never attend cocktail parties to chatter about their newest cool investment. I mix in a few other factors such as only buying large/mega caps to increase survivability in recessions. And -- with a CPA for a son -- I only buy the strongest Big Four audited stocks.
Finally, I ask myself, is this a stock Warren or Charlie would buy?
bar, the article was on what might be the mystery stock BRK has been buying up shares in, with the right to not disclose the identity of the ticker yet, and it went through the analysis and settled on MUFG being the likely target ticker due to WB and BRK increasing its investments in Japan and that MUFG would be a great compliment to the 5 trading houses. Not to mention the potential significant stake in Morgan Stanley through MUFG.
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=174063446
Bar, >> subscriptions <<
No subscriptions, just regular info and articles from the internet. Buffett, Weschler, and Combs say they each read ~ 500 pages / day, so it's no wonder they have such great results :o)
Buffett also says that for people who are not professional money managers (ie just about everyone), extreme diversification is the way to go --> broad, low cost index funds (video below). And he also says to avoid trading.
So it's simple, but why don't more people do it? A few reasons come to mind -- 1) An overly cavalier attitude, especially in the early years of investing, 2) The lure of 'get rich quick', 3) The 'drug' of active trading, 4) Index funds are boring, 5) Individual stocks/sectors are a fun / interesting hobby.
With #5, I figure the idea is to have the benefits of the hobby, while minimizing the risk. Therefore small individual positions, with the bulk of the stock allocation in the broad index / S+P 500. And for the individual stock side --> find stocks like CTAS :o)
GFP do you subscribe to any stock research such as MF or Seeking Alpha? I was just reading more about MUFG but am content to hold the five trading houses indirectly via BRK as I have for years.
BTW I see that BRK is up 17% YTD and 37% for the past year. Excellent. My huge Cintas holding is up an incredible 45% YTD. Of course my index funds are doing very well. My kids' long held QQQ is up a stunning 45% for the past year.
We do have a few stinkers, mostly smaller holdings. Walgreens, Boeing, and worst... Leggett and Platt.
Bar, >> Japanese bank <<
The proposed target bank in the article is Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), with a market cap ~ $120 bil. But as Prudent Capitalist pointed out, the idea would be for Berkshire to buy a sizable chunk, rather than acquiring the entire bank. MUFG also has a stake in Morgan Stanley (see below), so MUFG sounds like a distinct possibility to be the mystery stock.
Another angle is that with Japan finally reversing their ZIRP / negative % policy, their banking sector could benefit. Unlike most sectors, bank stocks can go up during rising %. So perhaps Buffett had an early 'heads up' on the Japanese % reversal, and he loaded up on MUFG early.
>>> MUFG is the largest bank by assets in Japan. More importantly, it's trading at a reasonably low forward P/E ratio of less than 12, and is valued modestly below its reported book value. High-quality banks trading below their book value have often been a lure that's attracted Buffett. Comparatively, Morgan Stanley is valued about 60% above its book value.
Furthermore, MUFG is actually riding Morgan Stanley's coattails to massive profits since the financial crisis more than 15 years ago. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group purchased $9 billion worth of preferred stock in Morgan Stanley following the collapse of Lehman Brothers. This stake in Morgan Stanley has consistently generated between 30% and 40% of MUFG's annual profits in recent years.
Why buy Morgan Stanley stock when Buffett can get exposure to Morgan Stanley via Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group at a fraction of the cost? I strongly believe MUFG to be the confidential stock Warren Buffett is buying at Berkshire Hathaway. <<<
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"so to use $120 bil of it to buy a Japanese bank" Those 5 Japanese trading companies aren't much like traditional US "Banks".
Anyway, just about everything I own is at or very near all-time high.
Berkshire Hathaway speeds up stock buybacks
By: Reuters | March 18, 2024
Berkshire Hathaway BRK.A has increased its pace of repurchasing its own shares, a sign that longtime Chairman Warren Buffett considers them undervalued and a good place to spend excess cash.
In its proxy filing on Friday, Berkshire said it repurchased the equivalent of 3,808 Class A shares this year through March 6, spending approximately $2.2 billion to $2.4 billion depending on the dates of the buybacks.
Nearly three-quarters of the repurchases took place after Feb. 12.
Berkshire repurchased $2.2 billion of its own stock in last year's fourth quarter, and $9.2 billion in all of 2023.
Its peak year for buybacks was 2021, when they totaled $27 billion.
Buffett, 93, has run Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire since 1965, and oversees buybacks and other major capital allocation decisions.
Repurchases help Buffett deploy some of the conglomerate's cash and equivalents, which totaled $167.6 billion at year end.
Berkshire has said it will maintain a $30 billion cash cushion, and that "financial strength and redundant liquiditywill always be of paramount importance."
Through Friday, Berkshire's share price was up 14% this year, about twice the gain for the Standard & Poor's 500 SPX.
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The article was not discussing the notion of WB and BRK buying an entire company right now. It discussed what was likely the "mystery stock" stock he is buying up share in without having to disclose publicly what ticker it is.
Prudent Capitalist, The idea that Buffett is looking to spend over $100 bil to acquire a single company, it just doesn't seem that likely. Berkshire currently has approx $168 bil in cash, so to use $120 bil of it to buy a Japanese bank? The overall Japanese stock market is really high right now, and they finally decided to start raising % rates. So, I think it's 'back to drawing board' for all us Buffett sleuths trying to gaze into the Oracle's crystal ball :o)
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BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC.
Charles Munger (Charlie), BRK Vice Chairman Warren Buffett, BRK Chairman/CEO Photo circa 1970
Berkshire Hathaway, Inc NYSE Symbols: BRK-A Class A shares BRK-B Class B shares | Berkshire Hathaway, which began in 1839 as a textile mill, neared collapse in 1962 when 32-year old Warren Buffett started buying control in the belief the company could be saved. Buffett initially maintained Berkshire’s textile business, but by 1967, he was expanding into other investments. Berkshire bought stock in the Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO) that now forms the core of its colossal insurance operations. Other early acquisitions included See's Candies, Blue Chip Trading Stamps and Dairy Queen. BRK moved from the OTC to the NYSE in 1988. Today Berkshire is a combination of 66 wholly owned subsidiaries such as the BNSF Railroad and 47 passive minority investments, notably its huge stake in Apple. As of 2021, BRK has a market cap of >$600 billion and 360,000 employees. Berkshire Hathaway is the nation's 7th largest business. |
Useful Links Berkshire Subsidiary Companies Buffett's Famous Annual Letters BRK Portfolio Tracker CNBC Buffett Archive http://www.BerkshireHathaway.com/ Buffett's office in Omaha. His desk has no computer Headquarters Address:: 3555 Farnam Street Omaha, NE 68131 b | |
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