Berkshire’s working earnings leap 34%, Buffett buys again no inventory and raises money hoard to 1 billion


Warren Buffett and Greg Abel walkthrough the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Assembly in Omaha, Nebraska on Could 3, 2025.

David A. Grogen | CNBC

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported a pointy rebound in working revenue on Saturday, whereas its money pile swelled to a brand new excessive with no buybacks.

Berkshire’s working revenue generated from the conglomerate’s wholly owned companies together with insurance coverage and railroads jumped 34% yr over yr to $13.485 billion within the third quarter. The features had been pushed by a greater than 200% surge in insurance coverage underwriting revenue, which rose to $2.37 billion.

Buffett as soon as once more shunned repurchasing shares regardless of a major pullback within the inventory. The corporate mentioned there have been no share buybacks throughout the first 9 months of 2025. Class A and B shares of the conglomerate are up 5% every in 2025, whereas the S&P 500 is up 16.3%.

With none buybacks, Berkshire’s money hoard swelled to a report $381.6 billion, surpassing the earlier excessive of $347.7 billion set within the first quarter of this yr.

Berkshire additionally did not discover different shares enticing, web promoting equities within the third quarter for a taxable acquire of $10.4 billion.

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Berkshire Hathaway class A shares yr thus far

The 95-year-old Buffett in Could introduced he is stepping down as CEO on the year-end after six legendary many years. Greg Abel, Berkshire’s vice chairman of non-insurance operations, is ready to take over as chief govt, whereas Buffett will stay chairman of the board. Abel can even begin writing annual letters in 2026.

The Omaha-based conglomerate’s shares have tumbled double digits from all-time highs following the announcement. The sell-off partially displays the so-called Buffett premium, or the additional worth buyers are prepared to pay due to the billionaire’s unmatched report and distinctive capital allocation abilities.

Final month, Berkshire introduced a deal to purchase Occidental Petroleum’s petrochemical unit, OxyChem, for $9.7 billion in money. The deal marks Berkshire’s largest since 2022, when it paid $11.6 billion for insurer Alleghany.