Topline
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway—a conglomerate that owns Geico and holds majority shares in companies like American Express, Bank of America and Coca-Cola—posted fourth-quarter losses and nearly $23 billion in net losses for 2022, as Buffett remained optimistic despite his investment company struggling amid poor foreign exchange rates.
Warren Buffett sent his annual letter to shareholders Saturday.
Key Facts
Berkshire posted a loss of $22.82 billion for 2022 and a 54% decline in fourth-quarter income, down from $39.65 billion in 2021 to $18.16 billion, according to Buffett’s annual letter to shareholders Saturday.
Operating profit fell 8% to $6.71 billion, down from $7.29 billion the previous year.
Berkshire repurchased $2.6 billion of its own stock during the fourth quarter, increasing its full-year buybacks to $7.9 billion.
Despite posting losses, the company’s operating earnings rose to an all-time high of $30.8 billion and total revenue rose 9.4% to $302.1 billion.
The company noted some of its losses came as a result of poor foreign exchange rates as the U.S. dollar lost value—with an inflation rate that peaked at 9.1% in June 2022.
Forbes Valuation
Buffett, also known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” is worth $106 billion, according to our estimates. Buffett is the fifth-richest person in the world.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/02/25/warren-buffett-letter-to-shareholders-berkshire-hathaway-sees-major-losses—but-remains-optimistic/