Warren Buffett will speak to shareholders and countless admirers after a series of marketing campaigns – a new trade war, devastating wildfires and on his own Berkshire Hathaway ) a shocking stock sales frenzy. The 94-year-old “Omaha’s Oracle” must read annual letter will be released Saturday at 8 a.m. ET along with Berkshire’s fourth-quarter earnings. Investors are eager to hear more than ever Buffett’s thinking about his broader markets and his punitive tariffs on President Donald Trump and the impact of California wildfires on Berkshire’s sprawling businesses. When the wildfire was exposed, an insurance giant Berkshire had no huge footprint in the California market, and its large reinsurance business would still be hit as it absorbs some insurance losses from the Los Angeles wildfire, which could be the U.S. The most expensive in history. “It seems that the insured will have a loss of more than $40 billion. So it’s not revealed here that this is quite large,” said James Shanahan, Berkshire analyst at Edward Jones. “Berkshire may be exposed to California wildfires here, which can be large.” Analysts and investors are looking closely at wildfire-related disclosures in earnings reports. UBS’s Brian Meredith estimates Berkshire Re’s insurance losses of $1 billion and Berkshire Primary lost $150 million, covering its coverage Includes commercial properties, health care liability and business owner insurance. CFRA analyst Catherine Seifert expects California’s leading auto insurer GEICO to raise claims for California wildfires, but manageable. Pariff Impact Buffett announced in 2018 and 2019 details of the trade conflict that broke out in Trump’s first semester, and he could once again comment on the president’s latest high-stakes battle. Trump has imposed a 25% tariff on goods in Mexico and Canada and a 10% tariff on goods imported from China. (Terms in Mexico and Canada were suspended for 30 days on February 3.) Steel and aluminum import duties will come into effect 25% in March. A few years ago, Berkshire’s CEO and chairman called the tariffs “a tax to consumers.” He said at the time that aggressive trade policies could have negative consequences around the world, including triggering inflation that could harm consumers. Investors will also look for any color of 10K tariffs from Berkshire’s portfolio companies. For example, the materials and construction business may experience challenging time importing timber from Canada. Pour the stock, Buffett hasn’t completed his stock sales frenzy, as Berkshire unloads more Bank of America stocks in the fourth quarter. The shares had about 680 million shares at the end of 2024, and are now below the important 700 million threshold, which is the number of Berkshire shares acquired through low-priced arrest warrants in 2011. , that might be more,” Piper Sandler analyst R. Scott Siefers said in a note. According to Shanahan, Berkshire’s BAC 1Y Mountain Bank of America overall On the top, Berkshire’s stock sales have surpassed the stock for nine consecutive quarters. As a result, the conglomerate’s terrible cash pile was high at a record $300 billion in the third quarter of 2024. The balance continues to grow and grow, Shanahan said. “I think he’s here to tell us that he thinks the market is expensive, stocks are expensive, even his own stock.” Successor Buffett has also settled outstanding lawsuits on Berkshire’s balance sheet over the past year or so and the question, paving the way for his successor, Greg Abel. Berkshire acquired the remaining 8% of Berkshire Hathaway Energy from Walter Scott’s family, which now owns 100% of the utility division. Meanwhile, the Haslam family sold the remaining 20% of their ownership interest to Berkshire after resolving a billion-dollar lawsuit. “He may be building a company for transition and leadership,” Shanahan said. “He hopes to build a large amount of cash balance by reducing large investments in the stock portfolio, by resolving outstanding litigation, so that he can be put into the market immediately and make some major investments, and Make some big investments that will give Greg the ability to have a chance to succeed. Put his fingerprint on the entire business.”
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