Berkshire Misc. Briefs - 1/5/17

There was a lot of news last month, and I fell behind on posting, so there are three posts this time. This is part 3, with miscellaneous news that didn't fit in the other two categories. That doesn't mean these are any less interesting, though!

(Part 1 - General Business | Part 2 - Subsidiaries)

HBO Sets Warren Buffett Documentary Premiere Date

HBO announced the premiere date for upcoming documentary “Becoming Warren Buffett” on Wednesday. The personal profile will premiere on Jan. 30 at 10 p.m./9c and will tell the true story of how an ambitious, numbers-obsessed boy from Nebraska became one of the richest men in the world.

Told primarily in Buffett’s own words, the film features never-before-released home videos, family photographs, archival footage and interviews with family and friends. [...]

Watch the trailer on YouTube.

Why Yahoo Shared an Investor Meeting in Omaha With the World

In April 2016, for the first time Yahoo Finance livestreamed the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting; a profitable venture for the industry-leading site (Yahoo Finance in November recorded 63 million monthly unique visitors, per comScore). This livestream was Yahoo Finance's longest, most complex endeavor to date, given it hosted the event on its platform. [...]

It all started with an email from Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett. "It said, 'Call me,'" recalled Yahoo Finance editor Andy Serwer. "So, I called him up. And he said 'I've got this idea. What do you think about livestreaming my annual meeting?' And I said 'yes' as quickly as I could!" [...]

The first-of-its-kind meeting was Buffett's idea. "I asked him later why he came to us," said Serwer. "He said there were several reasons: you successfully executed an NFL game. (The Buffalo Bills-Jacksonville Jaguars matchup in October 2015 netted 15.2 million viewers.) You have the technology to do it. You have the global platform. And, then he also said, 'I have this relationship with you and I know that I can just call you up anytime and get through to you.'"

Berkshire Hathaway to bet on earthquake insurance in Japan

An insurance company under Berkshire Hathaway of the U.S. is considering making a foray into Japan, betting on the potential of the country's earthquake insurance market.

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance plans to operate as a reinsurer, purchasing earthquake insurance contracts from casualty insurers in Japan, according to Marc Breuil, a BHSI executive in charge of Asia. [...]

After BHSI starts selling earthquake reinsurance in Japan, earthquake policies may become widespread in the country. Currently, about 10% of Japanese companies are insured against temblors. This is stunted compared to the rate in other earthquake-prone countries.

One major reason for the low percentage is the relatively high premiums for earthquake insurance when compared to fire insurance. Another reason is that insurers have refrained from actively selling earthquake policies to companies, citing unstable prices in the reinsurance market.

Buffett's Berkshire Is Urged to Sell Fossil Fuel Stocks

A Nebraska nonprofit has said it will propose that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. sell its investments in oil refiner Phillips 66 and other companies involved in fossil fuels over 12 years.

The Nebraska Peace Foundation, which focuses on anti-war, civil rights and environmental issues, said it submitted a formal proposal for Berkshire shareholders to consider at the Omaha-based conglomerate's annual meeting next May 6.

Buffett’s Son Steps Down From Coke Board to Focus on Charity

Howard Buffett, the son of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Chairman Warren Buffett, is stepping down from the board of Coca-Cola Co. to spend more time working at his foundation. [...] He runs the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, which supports sustainable agriculture and conflict resolution programs. He also has operated a 1,500-acre (600-hectare) farm in Illinois and has written books on topics such as world hunger and conservation.

Warren Buffett makes appearance at Dolphins-Cardinals game

The Miami Dolphins have a special guest for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals. Business tycoon Warren Buffett roamed the Dolphins’ sideline pregame to talk to members of the organization and show his support.

Buffett, who is one of the richest people in the world, has attended Dolphins games in the past. He was at last year’s home opener and is friends with four-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. [...]

Berkshire News Briefs - 10/12/16

Mars Cashes Out Warren Buffett to Take Control of Wrigley

Mars Inc. has finally taken full control of Wrigley, formally putting M&Ms and Altoids mints in the same division — and cashing out its partner, Warren E. Buffett, in the process. [...]

Berkshire Hathaway helped Mars buy Wrigley for about $23 billion in 2008. It was a classic deal for the billionaire, who has traditionally favored acquisitions involving well-known names and strongly performing businesses.

But there was a lucrative element in the way Mr. Buffett participated in the transaction. As part of the arrangement, Berkshire received preferred shares worth about $2.1 billion, which paid a 5 percent annual dividend, and $4.4 billion worth of bonds that carried a hefty 11.45 percent interest rate. [...]

Berkshire Is Bigger Than Buffett

We think two big concerns--a belief that Berkshire Hathaway's size will prevent it from growing at a decent clip in the future and that the company's shares will get pummeled once Buffett no longer runs the show--have kept some investors on the sidelines. Although we believe that the wide-moat firm is unlikely to consistently grow its book value per share at a double-digit rate, something that happened nine times during 2001-15 and 40 times during 1965-2015, we think that Berkshire can grow its book value per share at a high-single- to double-digit rate going forward, much as we've seen since the start of the new millennium. This type of growth should leave returns solidly and consistently above the firm's cost of capital [...]

Cash is piling up faster than Warren Buffett can invest it

Warren Buffett has the kind of money problem most people would envy: a growing mountain of cash.

Nearly $73 billion piled up at Berkshire Hathaway by mid-summer, more than Buffett’s conglomerate has ever held before.

And the total continues growing every day Buffett doesn’t make a major investment because Berkshire’s 90-odd businesses generate roughly $1.5 billion in cash every month. [...]

Yahoo Finance to Host Exclusive Live Stream of Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting for Second Year

Yahoo! Inc. today announced that it will host the exclusive live stream of Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholders meeting on Saturday May 6, 2017, for the second year in a row. Approximately 40,000 Berkshire Hathaway shareholders from around the world attend the highly anticipated annual event. In 2016, Yahoo Finance opened the meeting to the general public via live stream, for the first time ever, with more than 1 million viewers tuning in. [...]

Berkshire Hathaway Eyes Growth Despite Cat Loss Concerns

Berkshire Hathaway’s non-insurance businesses like utilities and & energy, and manufacturing, service & retail, have been reporting favorable results. In fact, total revenue from manufacturing, service and retail has improved substantially over the past several quarters. The strong results across most of the units can be attributed to better economic conditions and higher consumer demand.

Also, the company’s book value has been improving consistently. The insurer’s already robust book value growth is expected to be boosted further with the turn of the economy, increased gains from the value of the derivatives positions, and continued positive contribution from earnings growth in insurance operations. [...]

Atlas Bolt & Screw President Ridenour to retire

Randy Ridenour, President of Atlas Bolt & Screw Company LLC, has decided to retire at the end of 2016 after 32 years with the company. [...]

Atlas Bolt & Screw Company, a Marmon/Berkshire Hathaway company, offers a wide range of construction fasteners that reduce installation costs and extend the lives of metal buildings worldwide. [...]

Shaw Contract eyes smaller town, to raise investment limit

Shaw Contract, a business unit of Shaw Industries Group Inc which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, is looking to penetrate into the small towns and also raise investment limit in the country. The Bengaluru [India]-based Shaw Contract India has been in operations for over two decades and is the second-largest supplier of commercial carpet tiles in the country with a market share of around 22 percent, the company claimed. [...]

Berkshire can't resist India any more, to return with reinsurance business

Warren Buffett, who had exited India three years back citing regulatory suffocation, can’t resist India any more. Berkshire Hathaway is in fact returning to India with a plan to set up a reinsurance branch which would be much bigger than what it was when it was into insurance broking. [...]

Currently, Berkshire is present in India as a services company and is a leader of reinsurance treaty — purchased by insurers from one or more other companies — of large insurance companies including Bajaj Allianz General Insurance.

The company provides support services such as data collection, market research and training to insurance companies. As a leader of the treaty, it reinsures vast portions of the risk underwritten by these companies. [...]

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company Expands to Macau, Makes Local Office Appointments

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company (BHSI) today announced that it has received a license to provide insurance and reinsurance in Macau and filled key positions in its newly established Macau office. [...]

Berkshire News Briefs - 5/27/16

Berkshire Hathaway's quartery 13-F came out last week, detailing last quarter's stock transactions. Dataroma has an easy-to-understand format for keeping up with BRK's holdings.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway takes new stake in Apple, ups stake in IBM (CNBC)

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has taken a new stake in Apple and upped its holdings in IBM, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Monday.

Berkshire portfolio managers Todd Combs and Ted Weschler, who each invest about $9 billion, made the investments.

Berkshire's new stake in Apple totaled 9.8 million shares, while the company boosted its shares of IBM by 198,853 to 81.2 million shares. [...]

Berkshire also boosted its holdings in Visa by 3.6 percent to 10.2 million Class A shares, increased its stake in Phillips 66 by 22.9 percent to 75.6 million shares, and upped its stake in Bank of New York Mellon by 3.6 percent to 20.8 million shares.

Berkshire reduced its holdings in a number of big names, as well. It lowered its holdings in Wal-Mart Stores by 949,430 to 55.2 million shares, and dissolved its stake in AT&T, according to the 13F filing.

Berkshire slashed its Procter & Gamble stake by 99.4 percent to 315,400 shares, and also reduced its stake in MasterCard by 5.6 percent to 4.9 million Class A shares.

Why Berkshire Hathaway Bought Into Apple (Fool Video)

Warren Buffett is famously anti-tech, but his company, Berkshire Hathaway, has recently become a shareholder of Apple.

In this segment from the MarketFoolery podcast, Chris Hill, Jason Moser, and Taylor Muckerman explain why the billionaire investor's company bought in. Learn why Apple isn't the same investment now that it was 10 years ago and why this move is much more in line with Berkshire's investment philosophies than it first seems. To wrap-up, the team runs down a couple other moves Berkshire Hathaway announced in its most recent 13-F filing.

Warren Buffett, Quicken Loans founder in Yahoo bid (Reuters)

Berkshire Hathaway Inc Chairman Warren Buffett is backing a consortium vying for Yahoo Inc's internet assets that includes Quicken Loans Inc founder Dan Gilbert, people familiar with the matter said on Friday. [...]

The consortium is in the second round of bidding in the auction for Yahoo's assets, the people said. Buffett is helping finance the offer, one of the people added. [...]

Susan Decker, who worked at Yahoo in several senior roles between 2000 and 2009, including president and chief financial officer, is now a director on Berkshire's board.

Warren Buffett: I may help bankroll billionaire Dan Gilbert's bid to buy Yahoo (CNBC)

Berkshire Hathaway has offered to be a potential finance partner for fellow billionaire Dan Gilbert's bid to buy Yahoo, Berkshire Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett confirmed to CNBC.

"I'm an enormous admirer of Dan and what he has accomplished in Quicken Loans‎. Yahoo is not the type of thing I'd ever be an equity partner in. I don't know the business and wouldn't know how to evaluate it, but if Dan needed financing, with proper terms and protections, we would be a possible financing help," Buffett told CNBC. [...]

Berkshire’s Jain Taps ‘Secret Weapon’ Raiguel to Run Gen Re (Bloomberg)

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. promoted longtime reinsurance executive Kara Raiguel to run the company’s Gen Re unit, which has struggled to expand amid increased competition.

Raiguel will take over from Franklin "Tad" Montross, according to an internal memo confirmed by Gen Re. She has been at Berkshire for 15 years and was a key deputy to Ajit Jain, who runs the company’s namesake reinsurance operation and recently took on responsibility for Gen Re as well.

Read Ajit Jain’s Memo About the New CEO at Berkshire’s Gen Re (WSJ Moneybeat)

For Berkshire investors, the two-page memo may be interesting for more than the information it provides about Ms. Raiguel. It also offers a glimpse of Mr. Jain’s writing style, and it sounds a fair bit like the folksy, jargon-free tone that Mr. Buffett favors. Mr. Jain has long been thought by outside observers of Berkshire to be one of the leading candidates to replace Mr. Buffett. [...]

Richline Group Acquires Nordt (BusinessWire)

Richline Group, Inc. has the pleasure to announce the acquisition, effective June 1, 2016, of John C. Nordt, Inc. [...] a leading manufacturer and supplier of precious metal products to the jewelry industry. Founded in 1872 in New York City, Nordt has operated in Roanoke Virginia since 1984.

Here's How Berkshire Hathaway Gets a $63 Billion Interest-Free Loan From the U.S. Government (Fool)

[...] Berkshire Hathaway has some structural advantages that are less well understood. One of them is the size of its deferred tax liabilities – a whopping $63.2 billion, based on the most recent data [...]

A deferred tax liability arises from temporary differences between a company's financial accounts and its tax accounts. [...] Because it is assumed that companies will eventually realize the investment gains achieved through the sale of their winning stocks thereby incurring capital gains tax, that future liability is reflected on the balance sheet as a deferred tax liability.

Berkshire's NetJets settles U.S. immigration bias claim (Reuters)

NetJets, the luxury plane unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc, agreed to settle U.S. charges that it discriminated against immigrant workers by requiring them to provide extra documents to prove their employment eligibility.

The settlement calls for NetJets to be monitored by the U.S. Department of Justice for two years, improve training of its human resources staff, and pay a $41,480 civil penalty, the department said in a Friday statement. NetJets denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle, and cooperated in the probe.

A NetJets spokesman said the government found "inadvertent errors" in the company's processes for verifying workers' residency. "There was no intent to discriminate," he added.

Berkshire Hathaway Insurance Group Invests In Technology (Travel Market Report)

Most people don’t think of Berkshire Hathaway as a hip modern brand. Warren Buffett is a conservative, patient investor who still owns a flip phone and brags he has sent one e-mail his whole life. What many might not know is that his Berkshire holding company owns a travel-insurance business that is making a mark for itself by offering high-tech, consumer-centric products and services. [...]

BHTP continues to invest in mobile technology and will be releasing a new version of its mobile app in the coming weeks. [...]

Berkshire News Briefs - 2/19/16

The quarterly 10-K statement, detailing Berkshire Hathaway's investment portfolio holdings, came out this week. An easy-to-read summary of the holdings is available, as always, at Dataroma.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Discloses Stake in Kinder Morgan (Bloomberg)

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. added an investment in Kinder Morgan Inc. during the fourth quarter, snapping up shares of the pipeline operator as its market value plunged.

Berkshire held 26.5 million shares of the company as of Dec. 31, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday disclosing U.S. stock holdings. The stake was valued at $395.9 million at the end of 2015. [...]

Berkshire Hathaway Buys Kinder Morgan, Sells Chicago Bridge, Reduces AT&T (Nasdaq)

In the third quarter 2015, Buffett held on to most of what he had, buying no new stocks and only increasing some of his existing holdings. Since the start of the 2016, his company of choice has been oil refiner Phillips 66, in which he increased his stake to 14.2%. He did not purchase its shares during the fourth quarter, however. [...]

In the fourth quarter, Berkshire Hathaway bought Kinder Morgan, increased Deere & Co., exited Chicago Bridge & Iron Co. and reduced AT&T. [...]

Yahoo to Live-Stream Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Meeting (Variety)

Yahoo has thrown in the towel on entertainment video content, but it’s still banking on big video events to try to grab eyeballs and boost its business.

The Internet company announced an agreement to host the first live-streaming coverage of billionaire Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting on April 30 in Omaha, Neb. The conglomerate’s event has previously been unavailable to the general public, and Yahoo is treating it as if it were the Super Bowl of modern capitalist culture. [...]

In addition, Yahoo Finance has exclusive rights to offer a VOD replay of the Berkshire Hathaway meeting for 30 days after the event. Yahoo will sell video and display advertising, as well as sponsorship opportunities, for the live stream.

Yahoo will deliver the Berkshire Hathaway meeting in up to 1080p HD format at 60 frames per second, equivalent to Blu-ray disc quality.

Berkshire Hathaway makes $642 million in deal (Omaha World-Herald)

Berkshire Hathaway made nearly $642 million when Symetra Financial was acquired by Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.

Warren Buffett’s company said in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week that it sold all 20 million of its Symetra shares as part of the deal.

See’s Candies blames ‘kosher’ candy error on printing mix-up (Omaha World-Herald)

See’s Candies said a printing error resulted in it selling some Valentine’s Day chocolates as kosher when they weren’t, a problem brought to light by a federal lawsuit filed in California alleging “fraudulent inducement.”

See’s, a part of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. of Omaha since 1972, said that after learning of the lawsuit, it found that shelf cards for some of its candy were mistakenly printed with the symbol of Kosher Supervision of America (KSA), which designates food as kosher.

The company offered refunds and said it apologizes to customers who purchased the boxes. [...]

This indie retailer is thriving thanks to Warren Buffett (Crain's Chicago Business)

In metro Chicago, the J.C. Licht chain, which sells [Benjamin] Moore paint in 31 locations from the West Loop to Northbrook and Hinsdale, is under aggressive new ownership and plans to expand to 50 stores in the next five years.

Elliot Greenberg, a former vice president of sales at Ring's End, a Darien, Conn.-based home improvement chain with about $38 million in paint sales, purchased the Licht stores from Benjamin Moore corporate ownership last year. This week, Greenberg will unveil a 38,000-square-foot paint mixing and distribution facility in Addison. [...]

Today, the Moore brand is on its third CEO since 2012: Mike Searles, a former CEO of Wilson's Leather. Under Searles, Buffett reissued his promise to dealers, and the company decided to sell its corporate stores back to experienced independents. Company executives reached out to Greenberg, who paid an unspecified sum for the Licht chain last year.

Lemonade: World’s First Peer-to-Peer Insurance Platform Receives Backing from Lloyds & Berkshire Hathaway (Crowdfund Insider)

Lemonade, a peer to peer insurance platform that seeks to address the profound shortcomings of the multi-trillion dollar insurance industry now has some prominent names backing the young company. Announced today, Lemonade has now received the support of “top tier” global reinsurance partners including Berkshire Hathaway National Indemnity and Lloyd’s of London. [...]