Berkshire Hathaway shares slide after earnings, CEO letter

By Jonathan Stempel

March 2 (Reuters) - ‌Berkshire Hathaway ​shares ​on Monday had their largest decline since Warren Buffett announced he would step down as chief executive, after ‌the conglomerate posted financial results that fell short of ⁠some analysts' expectations and expressed caution about investing its cash.

The Class A shares fell ‌as much as 5.3% ‌by early afternoon, and Class B shares, worth about 1/1,500th as much, fell about the same amount. Shares fell as ​much as 6.8% last May 5, after Buffett unexpectedly announced that Greg Abel would take charge starting in 2026. Buffett ⁠had led Berkshire since 1965, and remains chairman.

Berkshire on Saturday said fourth-quarter operating profit, ​which excludes gains and losses on common stocks led by Apple, fell 30% to $10.2 billion, including a 38% overall ​decline at Geico and other insurance ‌businesses.

In his first annual letter to shareholders, Abel said Geico may face continued pressure to keep ⁠customers as rivals lower car insurance rates, while other insurance and reinsurance operations face pricing pressures as more capital enters their markets.

While saying ⁠Berkshire's $373 billion cash stake did not signal a "retreat from investing," Abel gave no ​indication Berkshire planned to resume stock buybacks after 1-1/2 years with none, or pay a shareholder dividend.

"We will assess value carefully, act patiently, and hold ‌for the long term – preferably forever," he wrote.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analyst Meyer Shields, who rates Berkshire "underperform," ‌on Monday said results "broadly" missed forecasts, also reflecting weakness at the ⁠BNSF railroad and in ‌energy, manufacturing and retailing ​operations. He lowered his 2026 earnings forecast by 5%.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by ‌Bill Berkrot)

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