cash2go-- thought you may be interested in this on brk;
OMAHA, Neb., Mar 08, 2003 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Berkshire
Hathaway Inc. reported its highest ever annual profit on Saturday, citing
increased profits from higher insurance and reinsurance rates charged by company
units, partly as a reaction to the destruction of the World Trade Center on
Sept. 11, 2001.
The Omaha, Neb., -based company run by billionaire investor Warren Buffet
reported a profit of $4.2 billion, or $2,795 a share, for 2002, compared with
$795 million, or $521 a share, for 2001.
Revenue rose 10 percent to a record $42.3 billion.
"In all respects, 2002 was a banner year," Buffet said in his annual report to
shareholders.
Berkshire's profit from insurance was higher than it might have been in a
"normal" year, Buffet said. The company also saw better returns from its
old-economy operations, which range from See's Candies to Helzberg Diamond Shops
and Ben Bridge Jeweler.
Berkshire's stock gained $1,210, or 1.90 percent, to close Friday at $64,800 a
share on the New York Stock Exchange.
In his annual letter to shareholder released Saturday on Berkshire's Web site,
Buffet touted his insurance and investment company's performance. "The
confluence of these favorable factors in 2002 caused our book-value gain to
outstrip the performance of the S&P 500 by 32.1 percentage points," he wrote.
The company made very few changes to its reported equity portfolio in 2002.
Berkshire added 6.7 million shares of M&T Bank, valued at $532 million to its
disclosure.
Berkshire's largest equity position remains 200 million shares of Coca-Cola Co.
worth nearly $8.8 billion as of Dec. 31, 2002, down from $9.4 billion at the end
of 2001.
AI
