Berkshire Hathaway Reports Record $50 Billion Q1 Loss

Berkshire Hathaway, the diversified, cash-rich investment vehicle/conglomerate controlled by Warren Buffett reported a record $49.7 billion loss – that’s $30.65 per Class A share equivalent, compared with $21.66 billion, or $13,209 a share, from Q1 2019 – the largest quarterly loss in the conglomerate’s history.

As the coronavirus wiped more than three years’ of gains from the US equity market in March, both Berkshire’s investment portfolio and wholly-owned subsidiaries were “negatively impacted”.

And like most of its peers, Berkshire can’t reliably predict when business conditions will return to normal.

Here are a few highlights courtesy of Yahoo Finance:

• Q1 operating earnings: $5.871 billion, up from $5.555 billion last year ($5.56 billion expected by analysts
• Q1 investment gains: -$54.517 billion, down from $15.498 billion last year
• Q1 net earnings per A share: -$30,652, down from $13,209 last year
• Q1 net earnings per B share: -$20.44, down from $8.81 last year

More from Reuters:

• IN THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF 2020, BERKSHIRE PAID $1.7 BILLION TO REPURCHASE SHARES OF CLASS A AND B COMMON STOCK
• BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC SAYS IT ENDED Q1 WITH $137.3 BLN CASH AND EQUIVALENTS
• BERKSHIRE OWNED $63.8 BILLION APPLE AAPL.O SHARES AS OF MARCH 31, COMPARED WITH REPORTED $73.7 BLN AS OF DEC 31
• BERKSHIRE OWNED $20.2 BILLION BANK OF AMERICA BAC.N SHARES AS OF MARCH 31, COMPARED WITH REPORTED $33.4 BLN AS OF DEC 31
• BERKSHIRE OWNED $9.9 BILLION WELLS FARGO WFC.N SHARES AS OF MARCH 31, COMPARED WITH REPORTED $18.6 BLN AS OF DEC 31
• BERKSHIRE OWNED $17.7 BLN COCA-COLA CO KO.N SHARES AS OF MARCH 31, COMPARED WITH REPORTED $22.1 BLN AS OF DEC 31
• MOST OF CO’S BUSINESSES NEGATIVELY AFFECTED IN SECOND HALF OF MARCH AND THROUGH APRIL DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
• BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY- CANNOT RELIABLY PREDICT WHEN BUSINESS ACTIVITIES AT CO’S NUMEROUS AND DIVERSE OPERATIONS WILL NORMALIZE

Underscoring the impact from the outbreak, Berkshire’s 10-Q mentions COVID-19 31 times.

As WSJ reminds us, Berkshire’s quarterly earnings are especially volatile “due to an accounting rule that went into effect in 2018 requiring companies to include unrealized investment gains or losses in their net income. Berkshire holds large stock investments, and their quarterly changes in value can have a big effect on Berkshire’s net income.”