Net loss in the third quarter
Warren Buffett loses billions due to Apple share price decline
November 5, 2023, 12:55 a.m
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Star investor Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate can post an operating profit of $10.76 billion, primarily through profitable business operations of its own companies. But the group also holds shares in Apple, which are on the decline and causing them book losses.
The fall in Apple stock prices has driven star investor Warren Buffett’s conglomerate deep into the red. The net loss in the third quarter was four times as high as a year earlier at $12.77 billion, as the Berkshire Hathaway Group announced.
The fact that Apple’s share price fell by twelve percent and other share packages held by Berkshire Hathaway also lost value resulted in book losses of $23.5 billion for the group of companies. Due to such valuation effects, the net result of the 93-year-old investor’s group of companies often fluctuates greatly. The group owed the fact that the book losses were not fully felt to the profitable business of its own companies.
Because the car insurer Geico had to pay for fewer accidents and the reinsurance business benefited from a relatively low-damage hurricane season, Berkshire Hathaway’s operating profit climbed by 41 percent to $10.76 billion.
Buffett is the sixth richest person in the world
Buffett always advises investors to pay attention to the results of his group’s operating business. According to Forbes magazine, the 92-year-old investor is the sixth richest person in the world with a fortune of more than $117 billion. He and Berkshire Hathaway receive particular attention because of his investment decisions and the broad positioning of his group in many industries.
The toy manufacturer Jazwares, which was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway last year and is known for its Squishmallows plush toys, also reported good business. At the freight railway BNSF, however, profits shrank due to declining demand for the transport of consumer goods.