Making Money host Charles Payne reflects on Warren Buffett’s annual shareholder report, which praised Charlie Munger.
warren buffettThe billionaire co-founder and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway spoke at the company’s annual meeting on Saturday about his decision to reduce his stake in tech giant Apple, which was and still is his largest holding. , provided some insights.
Berkshire’s apple stock Despite falling just 11%, the iPhone maker’s stock price stood at $135.4 billion as of March 31, down 22% from $174.3 billion at the end of 2023. The company is believed to have sold about 115 million shares, or 13% of its holdings, during the quarter.
The sale helped Berkshire realize an after-tax gain of $11.2 billion from the sale of its Apple stock in the quarter, increasing the company’s cash holdings to a record $189 billion. Despite Berkshire’s reduction in Apple stock, Buffett said he expects it to remain the company’s largest stock investment.
“We’re selling stock, and I think it’s very likely that at the end of the year Apple will be the largest common stock that we own,” Buffett said. He went on to explain how he and his late business partner Charlie Munger viewed equity investments in companies like Apple.
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Warren Buffett, co-founder and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, spoke about the company’s decision to reduce its stake in Apple. (Photo by Daniel Zuknik/WireImages/Getty Images)
“What’s interesting is what Charlie and I looked into. common stock Or marketable stocks or what people like to think of as a business. So when we own Dairy Queen, or whatever it is, we look at it as a business. When we own Coca-Cola or American Express or Apple, we look at it as a business,” Buffett explained.
“Right now, we can buy really great companies in the market as a business. We can’t buy all their shares, we can’t buy 90%, 80%, etc.,” he added.
| ticker | safety | last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRK.A | Berkshire Hathaway Company | 602,911.01 | -3,502.44 | -0.58% |
| BRK.B | Berkshire Hathaway Company | 400.77 | -0.01 | -0.00% |
| AAPL | Apple. | 183.36 | +10.33 | +5.97% |
Buffett went on to say that these companies and Apple are “great” companies and that Berkshire’s ratings on them will continue to make them major stocks unless something dramatic happens.
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Buffett said Apple is a “great” company and expects it to remain Berkshire’s biggest stock, barring something unforeseen. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/Getty Images)
“We’re going to own Apple and American Express unless something really special happens. coca cola When Greg takes over this place,” Buffett said.
In a question and answer session afterwards, Buffett cited Apple CEO Tim Cook’s leadership as a reason for his confidence in the tech giant, saying he is a great successor to Apple. late steve jobs.
Buffett also mentioned Tax impact Selling Apple shares at a time when capital gains tax rates are historically low, he said, could rise again in the future as the government seeks to reduce the budget deficit. He also said holding more cash shares is preferable given the market alternatives and uncertainty around the world.
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Buffett said he was not concerned about the tax burden from Berkshire’s sale of some of its Apple shares. (Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“Under the current circumstances, I’m not concerned about building a cash position at all. If you look at the alternatives to what’s available in the stock market and look at the picture of what’s going on in the world, it’s very I find it attractive,”’ Buffett said.
“Almost everyone I know is more careful about not paying taxes than I think they are. We’re comfortable paying taxes at Berkshire, and we’re comfortable paying taxes at Berkshire, and we’re paying more attention to paying taxes than I think we are at Apple. “We pay a federal tax rate of 21%. Not long ago it was 35%, and in the past when I was in business it was 52%,” Buffett said.
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“I don’t mind writing that check one bit, and considering what America has done for you, I don’t mind that we do it and that I do it at 21 years old. “I really hope that’s the case,” he explained, “and we’re going to sell a higher percentage after that, but I don’t think it would actually bother me if we sold a little bit of Apple this year.” did.
Reuters contributed to this report.
