- Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway posted a 14% drop in first-quarter operating profits on Saturday.
- Berkshire sold a net $1.5 billion of stocks and grew its cash pile to a record $348 billion.
- Buffett has been stymied by hefty valuations for stocks, acquisitions, and buybacks.
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported a 14% drop in first-quarter operating profits to $9.6 billion ahead of Buffett speaking at the company’s much-watched annual meeting in Omaha on Saturday.
Berkshire’s insurance underwriting division’s 49% year-on-year profit decline to $1.4 billion was largely to blame for the company’s overall earnings decline.
The famed investor’s conglomerate sold a net $1.5 billion of stocks, as it bought $3.2 billion on stocks and sold $4.7 billion worth. The disposals marked the 10th straight quarter that it’s been a net seller of stocks.
However, the sales were significantly smaller than last year, when Berkshire sold a net $134 billion of stocks in just 12 months.
The disposals contributed to a 4% increase in Berkshire’s cash pile to a record $348 billion, or $333 billion if $14.4 billion of payables for Treasury purchases are subtracted. That figure exceeds the market capitalizations of most S&P 500 companies, including Bank of America and Coca-Cola.
Buffett didn’t opt to repurchase any Berkshire shares last quarter, making it three straight quarters without any buybacks.
The bargain hunter and his team have been thwarted by lofty valuations for public stocks, private businesses, and even Berkshire shares in recent years.
The lack of opportunities — and Berkshire cutting key positions Apple and Bank of America last year — has boosted its cash pile to record levels.
Regardless, Berkshire Class B shares have soared 20% this year to trade at all-time highs of about $540. The stock has benefited from tariff turmoil that has pushed the S&P 500 down 3% this year, as investors seek haven in Berkshire and bet on Buffett to capitalize if the market crashes.
Read the full article here
