Berkshire reports its first Q3 of the Greg Abel era — operating earnings fell, but buybacks accelerated.
The facts: Berkshire Hathaway released its Q3 results on Saturday, Nov. 7 (Reuters; official company release): operating earnings fell 5.8% YoY to $12.71 billion, while net income fell 28% to $22.11 billion as investment gains shrank. Buybacks surged to $9.6 billion — more than double Q2's $4.5 billion — with another roughly $2 billion in October. GEICO was the weak spot: pretax earnings fell 45% as its loss ratio rose to 76.6%. On the other hand, BNSF was up 19.3%, and nine-month operating earnings were still up 8% to $37.03 billion. BRK.B closed Friday at $570.89 (-0.25%) — before these results came out.
Market context: Last Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.31% to 7,376.86 and the Nasdaq gained 1.09% to 24,579.42 after a hotter-than-expected U.S. jobs report (NFP +165,000 vs. expectations of around 59,000–65,000), but the rebound was led by chip stocks — 312 S&P stocks fell, compared with 182 that rose.
What I'm watching next: Monday's regular-session reaction — will the market reward Abel's aggressive buybacks or focus on the weakening insurance business? — plus U.S. CPI on Tuesday, Nov. 10, as the next signal for market direction.
My take: this isn't just a story about weak earnings; it's a signal of a new leadership style. Abel is using Berkshire's massive cash pile to buy back shares while they look relatively cheap, much more aggressively than in the Buffett era. But GEICO's claims pressure is a reminder that the insurance engine, which has long been a source of low-cost float, isn't running as smoothly as before. One quarter isn't enough to judge — what matters is whether buybacks at this scale continue and GEICO recovers.
This is my analysis, not financial advice — always DYOR.
What do you think: are these $9.6 billion in buybacks a sign that Abel is confident, or a sign that he's running out of places to put the cash?
#SahamUSA #BerkshireHathaway
The facts: Berkshire Hathaway released its Q3 results on Saturday, Nov. 7 (Reuters; official company release): operating earnings fell 5.8% YoY to $12.71 billion, while net income fell 28% to $22.11 billion as investment gains shrank. Buybacks surged to $9.6 billion — more than double Q2's $4.5 billion — with another roughly $2 billion in October. GEICO was the weak spot: pretax earnings fell 45% as its loss ratio rose to 76.6%. On the other hand, BNSF was up 19.3%, and nine-month operating earnings were still up 8% to $37.03 billion. BRK.B closed Friday at $570.89 (-0.25%) — before these results came out.
Market context: Last Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.31% to 7,376.86 and the Nasdaq gained 1.09% to 24,579.42 after a hotter-than-expected U.S. jobs report (NFP +165,000 vs. expectations of around 59,000–65,000), but the rebound was led by chip stocks — 312 S&P stocks fell, compared with 182 that rose.
What I'm watching next: Monday's regular-session reaction — will the market reward Abel's aggressive buybacks or focus on the weakening insurance business? — plus U.S. CPI on Tuesday, Nov. 10, as the next signal for market direction.
My take: this isn't just a story about weak earnings; it's a signal of a new leadership style. Abel is using Berkshire's massive cash pile to buy back shares while they look relatively cheap, much more aggressively than in the Buffett era. But GEICO's claims pressure is a reminder that the insurance engine, which has long been a source of low-cost float, isn't running as smoothly as before. One quarter isn't enough to judge — what matters is whether buybacks at this scale continue and GEICO recovers.
This is my analysis, not financial advice — always DYOR.
What do you think: are these $9.6 billion in buybacks a sign that Abel is confident, or a sign that he's running out of places to put the cash?
#SahamUSA #BerkshireHathaway