An 'Amazing Business': Buffett Buys 75M More Apple Shares In Q1

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) ended 2017 owning 165.3 million shares of Apple Inc. AAPL stock. The billionaire investor said Friday that his firm bought another 75 million shares in the iPhone maker.

What Happened

Buffett isn't looking to spend time trying to guess how many iPhone Xs Apple will sell in any one given quarter, he said during a CNBC interview Friday morning. Investors who do so may be totally missing the point, as Apple boasts a "wide, wide gap" against its peers, said Buffett, 87.

This would be similar to BlackBerry Ltd BB's dominance in the cell phone market in its early days 10 years ago. At that point in time, no one bothered to question how many BlackBerry devices the company would sell in any one given quarter.

Apple is an "amazing business" with products so appealing they belong "on a dining room table — that's not the way it used to be," Buffett said. 

Why It's Important

Investing in Apple is akin to investing in a farm, Buffett said. Nobody bases an investment decision on a farm based on whether or not it will rain next year, he said. Rather, investors buy a firm because it is a "good investment over 10 or 20 years."

What's Next

Buffett's confirmation of an incremental stake in Apple, coupled with his positive views on the overall economy, helped boost Apple's stock higher by nearly 1 percent early Friday morning at $178.80. It will soon be seen if the stock can hold onto its gains, as bull investors hope the stock can move above its all-time high of $183.50.

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Photo courtesy of Apple.