Zinger Key Points
- Buffett clarified at the shareholder meeting the trimming of Apple stake to foot the tax bill and to shore up the firm's cash position.
- Apple is still Berkshire's top holding, with the firm owning $135.36 billion worth of shares.
- Get New Picks of the Market's Top Stocks
Investment guru Warren Buffett confirmed Wednesday the trimming of his Apple, Inc. AAPL stake and finally shed light on the mystery stock his firm, Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. BRK BRK, accumulated ahead of the first quarter.
Apple, Chevron Trimmed: Berkshire reduced its Apple position by a little over 116 million.
The firm now owns 789,368,450 Apple shares valued at $135.36 billion, a 13F filing shows. This is the second straight quarter that the Buffett-led company has diluted its Apple stake.
The iPhone manufacturer remains Berkshire’s top holding.
Earlier this month, Buffett — at the annual Berkshire shareholder meeting — said the dilution has to do with footing the tax bill and the desire to hold more cash due to economic uncertainties.
After adding 15.9 million Chevron Corp. CVX shares in the fourth quarter, the firm sold 3.1 million shares of the oil giant in the first quarter. The latest 13F showed Berkshire owning 112.98 million shares worth $305.70 million.
But Berkshire added 4.32 million shares of Occidental Petroleum Corp. OXY, with its latest stake amounting to 248.02 million.
Berkshire maintained its stake in its other three core holdings:
- Bank of America, Inc. BAC: 1.03 million shares valued at $39.17 billion
- American Express Co. AXP: 151.61 million shares valued at $34.52 billion
- Coca-Cola Co. KO: 400 million shares valued at $24.47 billion
See Also: Best Growth Stocks Right Now
Mystery Stock Unveiled: Berkshire also finally disclosed the mystery stock it sounded out earlier. The firm bought a big chunk of Chubb Limited CB shares.
Berkshire accumulated 25.92 million shares of the property and casualty insurer at a valuation of $6.72 billion. This stake gives Berkshire a 6.4% stake in the insurer (based on 406 million in outstanding shares).
Insurance has been a staple sector in Berkshire’s portfolio. Other holdings include auto insurer GEICO, reinsurance company General Re and Alleghany Corporation, a holding company of property and casualty reinsurance and insurance operating subsidiaries.
HP Stake Jettisoned: Berkshire cashed out of HP Inc. HPQ in the first quarter. The firm sold all the 22.85 million shares (worth $687.64 million) of the computer and peripherals maker it held at the fourth quarter.
Other Disposals: Among the other portfolio stocks, the firm part disposed include:
| Current Position (number of shares) | Q-o-Q Change | |
| Louisiana-Pacific Corporation LPX | 6.60M | -6.34% |
| Paramount Global PARA | 7.53M | -88.11% |
| Sirius XM Holdings Inc. SIRI | 36.68M | -8.85% |
At the shareholder meeting, Buffett previewed the Paramount Global sale and took the responsibility for zeroing in on the investment.
“It was 100% my decision, and we’ve sold it all, and we lost quite a bit of money,” he said.
Berkshire Hathaway’s Class A shares were little changed at $413.01 in premarket trading, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Image: Shutterstock
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
