OMAHA, Nebraska: Billionaire Warren Buffett slashed Berkshire Hathaway’s massive Apple stake in a move that could prove unsettling for the broader stock market — both because the investor is so revered and because there had been little positive financial news lately.
Just two years ago Buffett called the stock one of the four giants of his conglomerate’s business alongside Berkshire insurance, utility and BNSF railroad businesses that it owns outright. That gave investors the impression that Buffett might hold onto Apple indefinitely as he has with the Coca-Cola and American Express shares he bought decades ago.
However, he has trimmed the Apple stake over the past year and has recently also sold off some of his stock in Bank of America and Chinese EV maker BYD while doing very little buying.
As a result, Buffett is now sitting on nearly $277 billion in cash, up from what was already a record $189 billion just three months earlier.
“This could could alarm the markets especially given the news from last week” with weak tech earnings, a disappointing jobs report and uncertainty about the future of interest rates, Edward Jones analyst Jim Shanahan said.
Buffett has consistently lavished praise on Apple CEO Tim Cook, who attended Berkshire’s annual meeting in Omaha in May, and talked about the way consumers are feverishly devoted to their iPhones and don’t like to switch. He did trim more than 10 percent of Berkshire’s Apple stake in the first three months of this year when he sold off more than 116 million shares, but the sale disclosed Saturday was a much bigger move.
Wedbush tech analyst Dan Ives said in a research note that he thinks “Buffett is a core believer in Apple and we do not view this as a smoke signal for bad news ahead.” Apple remains the largest investment in Berkshire’s portfolio by far — more than double its Bank of America stake.
Ives said he thinks the recent tech sell-off is only a temporary distraction from the industry’s long-term boom.
Berkshire didn’t give an exact count of its Apple shares in Saturday’s report, but it estimated the investment was worth $84.2 billion at the end of the second quarter even though shares soared over the summer as high as $237.23. At the end of the first quarter, Berkshire’s Apple stake was worth $135.4 billion.
Shanahan estimates that Berkshire still holds about 400 million Apple shares.
Still, while CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said she looks at the Apple sale more as responsible portfolio management because the tech giant had become such a large portion of Berkshire’s holdings, it does look like Buffett may be preparing for a downturn.
“This is a company girding itself for a weaker economic climate,” Seifert said.
Berkshire reported a small drop in its bottom-line earnings because of a drop in the paper value of its investments. The company said it earned $30.348 billion, or $21,122 per Class A share, during the second quarter. That’s down from $35.912 billion, or $24,775 per A share, a year ago.
Buffett has long cautioned investors that it’s better to look at Berkshire’s operating earnings when judging its performance because those figures exclude investment gains and losses which can vary widely from quarter to quarter.
By that measure, Berkshire’s operating earnings grew more than 15 percent to $11.598 billion, or $8,072.16 per Class A share, from $10.043 billion, or $6,928.40 per Class A share, a year ago. Geico led the improvement of Berkshire’s businesses while many of its other companies that are more sensitive to the economy reported lackluster results.
The results easily topped the $6,530.25 earnings per share that four analysts surveyed by FactSet Research predicted.
Berkshire owns an assortment of insurance businesses along with BNSF railroad, several major utilities and a varied collection of retail and manufacturing businesses, including brands like Dairy Queen and See’s Candy.
Warren Buffett surprises by slashing Berkshire Hathaway’s longtime Apple stake in second quarter
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Warren Buffett surprises by slashing Berkshire Hathaway’s longtime Apple stake in second quarter
- He has trimmed the Apple stake over the past year and has recently also sold off some of his stock in Bank of America and Chinese EV maker BYD while doing very little buyin
Escapee from Portuguese prison caught in Morocco, four still at large
- On Sept. 7, the five convicts escaped from Vale de Judeus prison during visiting hours, when the guards were busy, with the help of a long ladder provided by an accomplice on the outside
LISBON: One of five inmates who staged a spectacular escape from a high-security prison near Lisbon a month ago has been recaptured in Morocco, Portuguese police said on Monday, while the other four, including foreign nationals, remain at large.
Moroccan authorities arrested Fabio Loureiro, 33, late on Sunday in Tangier.
He will appear before a judge in Morocco before his extradition to Portugal to serve the rest of a 25-year prison sentence for armed robbery, drug trafficking, extortion and other crimes, police said.
On Sept. 7, the five convicts escaped from Vale de Judeus prison during visiting hours, when the guards were busy, with the help of a long ladder provided by an accomplice on the outside.
The prison guards’ union has long been flagging what it sees as inadequate staffing and security at the prison with a capacity for 560 inmates, especially since the watchtowers were torn down and replaced with video surveillance.
India offers financial support to Maldives after talks to repair ties
NEW DELHI: India stepped up its development assistance to the Maldives after the two leaders held talks in New Delhi on Monday in a bid to repair strained ties that saw the president of the Indian Ocean archipelago forging closer relations with China.
After the talks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India will offer financial support to the cash-strapped Maldives in form of a $100-million treasury bills rollover. The countries also signed a $400-million currency swap agreement.
The two leaders virtually inaugurated a new international airport in the Maldives, and Modi announced that work will be accelerated on the India-assisted Greater Male Connectivity Project, which aims to link key islands of the Maldives through modern transport networks.
“India is Maldives’ nearest neighbor and a close friend,” Modi said during a joint news conference. He said the Maldives held an important position in India’s “neighborhood first policy.”
Tensions between India and the Maldives have grown since President Mohamed Muizzu, who favors closer ties with China, was elected last year after defeating India-friendly incumbent Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. Leading up to the election, Muizzu had promised to expel Indian soldiers deployed in the Maldives to help with humanitarian assistance.
Indian man charged with rape and murder of doctor that sparked widespread protests
- The suspect, named as Sanjoy Roy, was arrested the day after the murder on August 9 and held in custody since
- Roy, who had been working as a volunteer supporting patients, would potentially face death penalty if convicted
Kolkata: Indian police on Monday charged a man with the rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor, a crime which appalled the country and triggered wide-scale protests.
The discovery of the doctor’s bloodied body at a government hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata on August 9 sparked nationwide anger at the chronic issue of violence against women.
The suspect, named as Sanjoy Roy, arrested the day after the murder and held in custody since, was formally charged on Monday with a confidential document of evidence submitted to the court.
“Sanjoy Roy has been charged with the rape and murder of the on-duty trainee post-graduate doctor inside the hospital,” a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) official told AFP.
Roy, widely reported by Indian media to be aged 33, and who had been working as a volunteer in the hospital supporting patients, would potentially face the death penalty if convicted.
Doctors in Kolkata went on strike for weeks in response to the brutal attack.
Tens of thousands of ordinary Indians joined in the protests, which focused anger on the lack of measures for women doctors to work without fear.
While most medics have returned to work, a small group began a hunger strike this month.
The doctors say the West Bengal state government had failed to deliver on its promises to upgrade lighting, security cameras and other measures to protect them.
India’s Supreme Court last month ordered a national task force to examine how to bolster security for health care workers, saying the brutality of the killing had “shocked the conscience of the nation.”
The gruesome nature of the attack drew comparisons with the 2012 gang rape and murder of a young woman on a Delhi bus, which also sparked weeks of nationwide protests.
UK’s Starmer urges Middle East ‘restraint’ on Oct 7 anniversary
- “All sides must now step back from the brink and find the courage of restraint. There is no military solution to these challenges,” Starmer said
LONDON: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday urged “all sides” in the Middle East conflict to “find the courage of restraint,” on the first anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel.
Addressing lawmakers in parliament, the UK leader said the region “cannot endure another year of this” and that “civilians on all sides have suffered too much.”
“All sides must now step back from the brink and find the courage of restraint. There is no military solution to these challenges,” Starmer told MPs in a somber House of Commons.
His comments followed a statement earlier Monday in which he paid tribute to the victims of those killed a year ago, saying: “We stand together to remember the lives so cruelly taken.”
Starmer, who took power in early July, added that Britain “must unequivocally stand with the Jewish community and unite as a country,” following a surge in reports of anti-Semitism across the UK.
“On this day of pain and sorrow, we honor those we lost, and continue in our determination to return those still held hostage, help those who are suffering, and secure a better future for the Middle East,” he said.
In his brief speech in parliament, Starmer said 15 British citizens were killed on October 7 in the attacks, and that another died while being held in captivity.
The Hamas onslaught left 1,205 dead on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on the latest official Israeli figures.
Some 251 people were captured and taken as hostages to the Gaza Strip. Of those 97 are still held captive including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Starmer also noted that more than 41,000 Palestinians had also been killed in Israel’s military response, reiterating his calls for immediate ceasefires in Lebanon and Gaza, and more aid to be allowed into the latter.
Again urging British citizens in Lebanon to leave, the UK leader noted 430 people had already left the country on government chartered flights over the last week.
Putin to meet Iran president in Turkmenistan Friday
- Leaders will meet in Ashgabat while attending an event celebrating a Turkmen poet
- Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin visited Iran last week for talks with Masoud Pezeshkian
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin is to meet Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian for talks Friday at a forum in the Central Asian country of Turkmenistan, a senior aide said Monday.
Yury Ushakov, Putin’s aide on foreign policy, told journalists the leaders will meet in Ashgabat while attending an event celebrating a Turkmen poet.
“This meeting has great significance both for discussing bilateral issues as well as, of course, discussing the sharply escalated situation in the Middle East,” Ushakov said.
Leaders of Central Asian countries are meeting to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the birth of 18th-century poet Magtymguly Pyragy.
Putin’s attendance had not been previously announced.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin visited Iran last week for talks with Pezeshkian and First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref.
The talks come as Israel intensively bombs Lebanon, targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah and Russia has evacuated some citizens.
Russia has close relations with Iran, and Western governments have accused Tehran of supplying Moscow with drones and missiles, which it has repeatedly denied.
Pezeshkian will also hold talks with Putin during a visit to Russia this month to participate in a BRICS summit of emerging economies.
