BRK.B changes
Pick any two versions below to diff them.
- Price
- $575.25
- Discount category
- Far above intrinsic value
- Next earnings
- 2027-02-27
- Next earnings is estimate
- Yes
- Company name
- Berkshire Hathaway
- Sector
- Conglomerate & insurance
- About
- Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company. It owns insurance companies such as GEICO, the BNSF railroad, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and many manufacturing, service and retail businesses. These include OxyChem, which it bought on January 2, 2026, and the homebuilder Taylor Morrison, which it bought on July 24, 2026. It also owns a large portfolio of stocks: at September 30, 2026, the five largest holdings were Alphabet, American Express, Apple, Bank of America and Coca-Cola. Insurance float, the money it holds for future claims, was about $178.5 billion. Greg Abel became CEO on January 1, 2026, and Howard G. Buffett became chairman on September 18, 2026. One Class A share equals 1,500 Class B shares.
- Thesis
- Berkshire trades at a premium because investors pay for safety: a very strong balance sheet, a group of steady businesses and the option to use a very large cash balance when other buyers cannot. Warren Buffett left the CEO role and then the chair, so investors now trust Greg Abel with that cash. Three things press on earnings. First, cash and Treasury bills of about $352 billion, after unsettled purchases, earn less as interest rates fall: insurance investment income fell 14% in Q3 2026. Second, insurance underwriting profit fell 43% in Q3 2026 from a strong year earlier. Third, investors wait to see how Greg Abel uses the cash. For the premium to be earned, three things must be true. Abel must put the cash to work at good returns, through buybacks such as the $9.6 billion of Q3 2026 and purchases such as OxyChem and Taylor Morrison. BNSF, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and the manufacturing, service and retail group must keep growing their earnings, as they did in Q3 2026. PacifiCorp's wildfire claims must keep falling. The full-year 2026 report and the annual letter, expected in late February 2027, are the next test. Because Berkshire changes slowly, the evidence arrives over several years, and the premium can get smaller if the cash stays idle as interest rates fall.
- Risks
- Berkshire holds about $352 billion of cash and Treasury bills after unsettled purchases. Lower interest rates cut this income: insurance investment income fell 14% in Q3 2026. Large purchases at high prices can also lower returns. Insurance results move with disasters. Berkshire had no significant catastrophe losses in the first nine months of 2026, so a large hurricane, wildfire or earthquake can cut underwriting profit sharply. PacifiCorp, a Berkshire Hathaway Energy utility, recorded about $2.85 billion of estimated losses for the 2020 and 2022 wildfires and still owed about $566 million at September 30, 2026. New fires or court rulings can add losses. Greg Abel now leads capital allocation without Warren Buffett as CEO or chairman. Investors must trust a new team with very large sums. The stock portfolio is concentrated: the five largest holdings were 65% of its fair value at September 30, 2026. The Kraft Heinz stake had a carrying value $1.4 billion above its fair value.
- Balance sheet
- Cash: $377.4B Debt: $130.8B Net cash: $246.7B Undrawn credit line: $13.2B Last debt due: 2097 Berkshire holds much more cash and short-term Treasury bills than debt. At September 30, 2026, the insurance and other businesses had cash of $36.0 billion and Treasury bills of $336.7 billion, of which $20.5 billion were unsettled purchases that Berkshire paid soon after. The railroad, utilities and energy businesses had cash of $4.7 billion. Borrowings were $45.8 billion in insurance and other, mostly Berkshire and finance subsidiary notes in U.S. dollars, yen, euros and pounds, and $85.0 billion in railroad, utilities and energy. Berkshire does not guarantee the debt of BNSF or Berkshire Hathaway Energy. Equity securities had a fair value of $335.5 billion, with $227.1 billion of unrealized gains that are taxed when sold. Insurance float was about $178.5 billion, and Berkshire shareholders' equity was $761.4 billion. In the first nine months of 2026, Berkshire spent about $14.4 billion on buybacks, $9.4 billion on OxyChem and about $6.8 billion on Taylor Morrison. Unused lines of credit and commercial paper capacity of subsidiaries were about $13.2 billion. As of 2026-09-30.
- Checkpoints
- Feb 27, 2027 (estimate): Full-year 2026 results and annual letter. Pending. Watch: Higher operating earnings at BNSF, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and the manufacturing group, with continued buybacks or a large purchase at a fair price, pass; falling earnings and an idle cash pile fail. May 2027 (estimate): 2027 annual meeting. Pending. Watch: A clear plan from Greg Abel for the use of cash and for buybacks passes; no change in the cash pile and no plan fails.
- Recent events
- 2026-11-07: Berkshire reported Q3 2026 results. Operating earnings fell 6% to $12.7 billion. Underwriting profit fell to $1.35 billion from $2.37 billion, and insurance investment income fell to $2.73 billion from $3.18 billion. BNSF earned $1.73 billion, up 19%, Berkshire Hathaway Energy earned $1.61 billion, up 8%, and manufacturing, service and retailing earned $4.04 billion, up 12%. Berkshire bought back about $9.6 billion of its shares in the quarter and $14.4 billion in the first nine months. Float was about $178.5 billion. 2026-09-18: Warren Buffett became Chairman Emeritus and stayed a director. The board elected Howard G. Buffett, a director since 1993, as chairman. Susan Decker stays lead independent director. 2026-08-08: Berkshire reported Q2 2026 results. Operating earnings rose 16% to $12.98 billion, and Berkshire bought back about $4.5 billion of its shares. 2026-07-24: Berkshire completed its purchase of Taylor Morrison Home Corporation for $72.50 per share in cash, or about $6.8 billion. It agreed to the deal on May 31, 2026. 2026-07-14: Warren Buffett gave 12 million Class B shares to four foundations. He said that he plans to give away all of his Berkshire shares by December 31, 2034. 2026-04-15: Berkshire issued ¥272.3 billion ($1.7 billion) of senior notes due from 2029 to 2056, with a weighted interest rate of 2.4%. 2026-02-28: Berkshire reported 2025 results and Greg Abel's first annual letter as CEO. Operating earnings were $44.5 billion in 2025, down from $47.4 billion, and $10.2 billion in Q4 2025. 2026-01-02: Berkshire completed its purchase of OxyChem, the chemicals business of Occidental Petroleum, for about $9.4 billion in cash. Occidental kept OxyChem's old environmental liabilities. 2026-01-01: Greg Abel became CEO of Berkshire, and Warren Buffett stayed chairman. 2025-12-08: Berkshire said that CFO Marc Hamburg will hand over the CFO role on June 1, 2026 and retire on June 1, 2027.