Ahead of Saturday’s annual shareholder meeting, Berkshire Hathaway reported first quarter results which showed a record operating profit of $11.22 billion.
In the first quarter of last year, Berkshire’s operating profits were $8.1 billion.
The company’s investment gains, however, fell sharply from the year-ago period, amounting to just $1.48 billion compared to some $24.75 billion last year.
Apple’s (AAPL) first-quarter decline of about 10% weighed on results, with the tech giant accounting for about 40% of Berkshire’s shares.
In its first quarter report, Berkshire also revealed that it had reduced its holdings in Apple during the first quarter. At the end of 2023, the value of Berkshire’s Apple position was $174.3 billion; at the end of the first quarter, the value of this position stood at $135.4 billion.
At last year’s annual meeting, however, Buffett took the time to point out to investors that the stock doesn’t actually represent that percentage of Berkshire’s overall portfolio, which includes its other wholly owned subsidiaries.
