Warren Buffett’s company reported just over one-third of last year’s profit Saturday morning just as thousands of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders streamed into an Omaha arena to listen to the revered investor answer questions.
The profit numbers were weighed down by a major drop in the value of its investments and $860 million in insurance losses related to policies that Geico and its other insurance companies wrote before the devastating Southern California wildfires.
Berkshire said it earned $4.6 billion, or $3,200 per Class A share, in the first quarter. That’s down from $12.7 billion, or $8,825 per Class A share, last year.
But Buffett has long recommended that investors pay more attention to Berkshire’s operating earnings because those exclude the value of its investments, which can vary widely from quarter to quarter. Berkshire must include the value of its investments in its bottom line numbers even though it hasn’t sold most of them.
By that measure, Berkshire’s earnings were still down 14% at $9.6 billion, or $6,703.41 per A share. Last year, the conglomerate reported operating earnings of $11.2 billion, or $7,796.47 per Class A share.
The analysts surveyed by FactSet Research predicted Berkshire would report operating earnings of $7,076.90 per Class A share.
But Buffett’s comments will be the main attraction Saturday. Investors will be looking for him to explain why Berkshire is now sitting on $347.7 billion cash as of the end of the first quarter, up from $334.2 billion at the end of the year. The growing cash pile is a reminder that Buffett hasn’t found any investments at attractive prices lately, but the report doesn’t show whether he bought anything in April when the market dropped after President Donald Trump’s tariff announcement.
Haibo Liu even camped out overnight outside the arena overnight to be first in line Saturday morning. Liu said he worries that this year could be Buffett’s last meeting since he is 94, so he made it a priority to attend his second meeting.
“He has helped me a lot,” said Liu who traveled from China to attend. “I really want to express my thanks to him,” Liu said.
Berkshire Hathaway owns dozens of companies, including Geico, BNSF railroad, a collection of massive utilities and an assortment of retail and manufacturing businesses including well-known brands like See’s Candy. It also holds a massive stock portfolio.