Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway trims Apple stake by 13% in Q1, remains biggest holding worth $135 billion

The value of Berkshire’s stake in Apple fell 22 per cent to $135.4 billion as of March 31 from $174.3 billion at the end of 2023, even though the iPhone maker’s share price fell just 11 per cent in the quarter. A large sale is an about-face for Buffett, who is normally tech-phobic but came to view Apple as a consumer goods company with strong pricing power and devoted customers. 

Some investors, however, have expressed concern that Apple consumed too much of Berkshire’s investment portfolio. Apple CEO Tim Cook, who is at the Berkshire meeting, has said that he still considers it a privilege to have Berkshire as a major shareholder. The sales leave Warren Buffett with more than six times the minimum $30 billion cash cushion he has pledged to keep. Berkshire realized $11.2 billion of after-tax gains in the quarter from selling investments.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc announced its first quarter results on Saturday, May 4, reporting a record quarterly profit, boosted by a significant increase in income from insurance underwriting. The first-quarter operating profit rose 39 per cent to $11.22 billion, or about $7,807 per Class A share, from $8.07 billion a year earlier.

The multinational conglomerate’s income fell to $12.7 billion in the quarter-under-review, or $8,838 per share, from $35.5 billion, when Berkshire had large unrealized gains from its stocks. Today’s shareholder meeting is the first since Charlie Munger, Buffett’s longtime friend and business partner, died in November 2023 at age 99.

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Published: 04 May 2024, 07:48 PM IST