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>>> Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Increases Stake in Paramount Global as Streaming Wars Stay Hot

The billionaire investor's company now owns about 15 percent of Paramount's Class B shares after first disclosing its stake in May.


The Hollywood Reporter

BY ALEX WEPRIN

NOVEMBER 14, 2022


https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-increases-paramount-global-stake-1235261648/


Warren Buffett is still betting on Paramount.

The famed investor’s company, Berkshire Hathaway, has increased its stake in Paramount Global in recent months, according to a filing Berkshire made with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday.

Berkshire now owns more than 91 million Class B shares in Paramount, making it the largest outside investor, holding about 15 percent of the company’s Class B stock, worth about $1.7 billion as of market close.

Paramount, of course, is controlled via its Class A shares by National Amusements, the holding company run by Shari Redstone.

Still, the significant investment by Buffett is sure to attract further attention. Buffett first revealed that he had bought in to Paramount in May, when he disclosed a stake of about 75 million shares, which was valued at $2.6 billion at the time. Since then, most media and entertainment stocks have fallen in value. Paramount, for example, was trading at $28 per share when Berkshire first bought in, and was at $18.80 as of market close Monday.

Paramount is but one of a handful of media and entertainment-related stocks held by Buffett, who also holds significant stakes in Apple, Amazon, Activision Blizzard, Charter Communications and Liberty Media.

However, Paramount is the only pure-play entertainment company on Berkshire’s list of holdings, suggesting that Buffett thinks it has a chance to compete in the streaming wars … or could be at the top of the list for potential acquirers.

Paramount Plus is facing tough competition from competitors like Netflix and Disney+, which are just now entering the ad-supported streaming space, as well as from Warner Bros. Discovery’s HBO Max.

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