Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Faces $15 Billion Loss
Berkshire Hathaway suffered around $15 billion in losses on its largest holdings during a global stock market sell-off.
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway faced losses worth approximately $15 billion on its major holdings amid a global stock market sell-off. However, Buffett’s decision to amass substantial cash reserves by reducing stock market positions helped cut losses.
In the last quarter, Berkshire Hathaway had a record $277 billion in cash reserves owing to a $76 billion stock sale. This cash pile was kept to be used during market volatility amid growing concerns over a potential US recession.
Impact on Berkshire Hathaway’s Stock Portfolio:
On Monday, Berkshire Hathaway’s stock portfolio hit as its major holdings—Apple, Bank of America, and Mitsubishi—saw sharp declines. This resulted in a substantial reduction in the company’s overall valuation as shares in Berkshire Hathaway fell by over 3%, bringing the company’s market capitalization down to $899 billion.
Berkshire’s stakes in several Japanese companies, such as Mitsui, Marubeni, and Sumitomo, also saw a decline in the same period while hundreds of millions of dollars were wiped from holdings in American Express, Moody’s, and Kraft Heinz.
Berkshire Hathaway’s Apple Decision:
Apple, one of Warren Buffett’s largest investments, saw its share price drop by more than 7%, resulting in a $5.7 billion loss for Berkshire Hathaway. It was reported that Warren Buffett sold nearly half of his Apple stocks, signaling his concern. Significant declines were also in other major tech stocks like Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla.
Despite the sell-off, some investors were seen buying. Blue Whale, an investment fund backed by billionaire Peter Hargreaves, purchased shares in Nvidia.
