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Berkshire Hathaway Discloses Nearly $1 Billion Stake in Apple

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A regulatory filing by multinational conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway -- which is run by Warren Buffett -- today revealed that as of March 31, the company owned 9,811,747 shares in Apple stock (via Bloomberg). Berkshire Hathaway's shares were valued at over $1 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2016, but given Apple's recent dip in stock value, it has subsequently declined to nearly $900 million.

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Berkshire Hathaway's stake in Apple appears to be a bet that the Cupertino company's stock will rebound, following its first ever year-over-year revenue drop in 13 years. The slump comes after Apple's April earnings call where it announced the first ever drop in iPhone sales in the 9 years that the smartphone has been on the market. Last week, shares of the company fell below $90 for the first time in nearly two years, but after Berkshire Hathaway's disclosure, Apple's stock price rose 2.2 percent to $92.50 in early trading Monday morning.

Earlier in April, Apple investor Carl Icahn decided to sell his stake in the company, explaining that he did so due to concern over China's attitude towards Apple's encroaching presence in the country. A second Apple investor, David Tepper, also dumped his shares of the company as its value continued to lessen. Tepper had 1.26 million shares that were valued at around $133 million.

Article Link: Berkshire Hathaway Discloses Nearly $1 Billion Stake in Apple
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2016/05/16/berkshire-hathaway-stake-in-apple/
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Berkshire is a long term "value" investor. This news is an addition to a position they already had. They like things like railroads, Dairy Queen, sugar water, and everyday things that people simply want and need but get very little press. This is a rare exception in terms of attention.

The two guys in the other story are traders. Berkshire is an investor. Long term.

It was Warren's lieutenants, Ted Weschler or Todd Combs that made the trade. Imagine if you can buying that many shares and not appreciably impacting the stock price upwards. Can you say limit orders from several terminals? Their average price? $93.

According to their SEC 13F filings, they added Apple, increased IBM, Phillips 66 and Visa, decreased WalMart, Procter and Gamble (99%), and MasterCard. They dumped AT&T.

They have a policy of buying back any Berkshire A shares at +20% if any investor wants to exit. Virtually none do. Last price: $212,140 per share.
 
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BMcCoy said:
And that's still only 0.2% of the company.
Wow.
The numbers are staggering...
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Your figure is only companies valuation. If this trend continues downward then the valuation goes down and that percentage goes up.
 
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maflynn said:
Well, I guess this is better news then other investors dumping Apple :)
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You mean the ones that dumped last year but it was only recently made public?

Jakexb said:
Watch people start reconsidering AAPL now that Buffett is in.
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I wondered why the stock was up close to 2% this morning. This must be why. Very interesting as Buffett has said before he had no interest in investing in tech (outside of his IBM stake).
 
joueboy said:
Your figure is only companies valuation. If this trend continues downward then the valuation goes down and that percentage goes up.
Click to expand...

It doesn't. When the stock price goes down, the value of Buffett's AAPL shares goes proportionally down as well. The number of AAPL stock on the market is fixed. The only way the percentage goes up is if Buffett acquires more shares.
 
We just hope that Bill Gates and Microsoft won't disclose their shares. Buffett and Gates are very close friends and businessman.:D
 
Wall Street doesn't really care how Apple performs, as what they really care about is manipulating the stock to drive short term returns. What I find funny, is that Apple themselves actually benefit from big dips in their stock price, allowing them to buy back shares at a lower rate. And given their huge cash reserves, these minor blips in the scheme of things are will be looked back upon as net positives for the company.

Berkshire bought more shares because they recognize the long-term value and why would you not invest when the share price drops? That's the name of the game. The only difference is they play the long game, vs. many others who look only at the short term.
 
That's great news, as Buffett has always been skeptic to Apple despite Jobs trying to change his mind.

As far as stock price goes, this nonsense is Wall St way to tell the company to dump Tim Cook. Stock would shot up 40% in a month, simply putting a random guy at the helm.
 
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in other news , investors buy low and sell high.

People are gambling the iPhone 7 does not suck, it's the product that will result in stock fluctuations. Though according to rumours of the device , could be tough times for stocks ahead in my opinion .
 
Rogifan said:
Very interesting as Buffett has said before he had no interest in investing in tech (outside of his IBM stake).
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If you read the Bloomberg article, they state that they don't see Apple as a tech company but rather it as a consumer products company. Makes sense since that is what Apple really is.
 
MH01 said:
in other news , investors buy low and sell high.

People are gambling the iPhone 7 does not suck, it's the product that will result in stock fluctuations. Though according to rumours of the device , could be tough times for stocks ahead in my opinion .
Click to expand...

Berkshire's time frame goes well into the 2020s, when Apple will be a very different company and nobody would even remember the iPhone 7.

That's my time frame, too, I've stopped watching daily (...or real time) quotes long ago, I take a look once in a while, and enjoy the dividend, which is not bad compared to current investment returns.
 
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