No Result
View All Result
SUBMIT YOUR ARTICLES
  • Login
Wednesday, October 1, 2025
TheAdviserMagazine.com
  • Home
  • Financial Planning
    • Financial Planning
    • Personal Finance
  • Market Research
    • Business
    • Investing
    • Money
    • Economy
    • Markets
    • Stocks
    • Trading
  • 401k Plans
  • College
  • IRS & Taxes
  • Estate Plans
  • Social Security
  • Medicare
  • Legal
  • Home
  • Financial Planning
    • Financial Planning
    • Personal Finance
  • Market Research
    • Business
    • Investing
    • Money
    • Economy
    • Markets
    • Stocks
    • Trading
  • 401k Plans
  • College
  • IRS & Taxes
  • Estate Plans
  • Social Security
  • Medicare
  • Legal
No Result
View All Result
TheAdviserMagazine.com
No Result
View All Result
Home Market Research Business

Warren Buffett’s best and worst investments in his 60 years as Berkshire Hathaway CEO

by TheAdviserMagazine
5 months ago
in Business
Reading Time: 4 mins read
A A
Warren Buffett’s best and worst investments in his 60 years as Berkshire Hathaway CEO
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LInkedIn



Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said Saturday that he wants to step down as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of the year. The revelation came as a surprise because the 94-year-old had previously said he did not plan to retire.

Buffett, one of the world’s richest people and most accomplished investors, took control of Berkshire Hathaway in 1965 when it was a textiles manufacturer. He turned the company into a conglomerate by finding other businesses and stocks to buy that were selling for less than they were worth.

His success made him a Wall Street icon. It also earned him the nickname “Oracle of Omaha,” a reference to the Nebraska city where Buffett was born and chose to live and work.

Here are some of his best and worst investments over the years:

Buffett’s Best

— National Indemnity and National Fire & Marine: Purchased in 1967, the company was one of Buffett’s first insurance investments. Insurance float — the premium money insurers can invest between the time when policies are bought and when claims are made — provided the capital for many of Berkshire’s investments over the years and helped fuel the company’s growth. Berkshire’s insurance division has grown to include Geico, General Reinsurance and several other insurers. The float totaled $173 billion at the end of the first quarter.

— Buying blocks of stock in American Express, Coca-Cola Co. and Bank of America at times when the companies were out of favor because of scandals or market conditions. Collectively, the shares are worth over $100 billion more than what Buffett paid for them, and that doesn’t count all the dividends he has collected over the years.

— Apple: Buffett long said that he didn’t understand tech companies well enough to value them and pick the long-term winners, but he started buying Apple shares in 2016. He later explained that he bought more than $31 billion worth because he understood the iPhone maker as a consumer products company with extremely loyal customers. The value of his investment grew to more than $174 billion before Buffett started selling Berkshire Hathaway’s shares.

— BYD: On the advice of his late investing partner Charlie Munger, Buffett bet big on the genius of BYD founder Wang Chanfu in 2008 with a $232 million investment in the Chinese electric vehicle maker. The value of that stake soared to more than $9 billion before Buffett began selling it off. Berkshire’s remaining stake is still worth about $1.8 billion.

— See’s Candy: Buffett repeatedly pointed to his 1972 purchase as a turning point in his career. Buffett said Munger persuaded him that it made sense to buy great businesses at good prices as long as they had enduring competitive advantages. Previously, Buffett had primarily invested in companies of any quality as long as they were selling for less than he thought they were worth. Berkshire paid $25 million for See’s and recorded pretax earnings of $1.65 billion from the candy company through 2011. The amount continued to grow but Buffett didn’t routinely highlight it.

— Berkshire Hathaway Energy: Utilities provide a large and steady stream of profits for Berkshire. The conglomerate paid $2.1 billion, or about $35.05 per share, for Des Moines-based MidAmerican Energy in 2000. The utility unit subsequently was renamed and made several acquisitions, including PacifiCorp and NV Energy. The utilities added more than $3.7 billion to Berkshire’s profit in 2024, although Buffett has said they are now worth less than they used to be because of the liability they face related to wildfires.

Buffett’s Worst

— Berkshire Hathaway: Buffett had said his investment in the Berkshire Hathaway textile mills was probably his worst investment ever. The textile company he took over in 1965 bled money for many years before Buffett finally shut it down in 1985, though Berkshire did provide cash for some of Buffett’s early acquisitions. Of course, the Berkshire shares Buffett began buying for $7 and $8 a share in 1962 are now worth $809,350 per share, so even Buffett’s worst investment turned out OK.

— Dexter Shoe Co.: Buffett said he made an awful blunder by buying Dexter in 1993 for $433 million, a mistake made even worse because he used Berkshire stock for the deal. Buffett says he essentially gave away 1.6% of Berkshire for a worthless business.

— Missed opportunities. Buffett said that some of his worst mistakes over the years were the investments and deals that he didn’t make. Berkshire easily could have made billions if Buffett had been comfortable investing in Amazon, Google or Microsoft early on. But it wasn’t just tech companies he missed out on. Buffett told shareholders he was caught “sucking his thumb” when he failed to follow through on a plan to buy 100 million Walmart shares that would be worth nearly $10 billion today.

— Selling banks too soon. Not long before the COVID pandemic, Buffett seemed to sour on most of his bank stocks. Repeated scandals involving Wells Fargo gave him a reason to start unloading his 500 million shares, many of them for around $30 per share. But he also sold off his JP Morgan stake at prices less than $100. Both stocks have more than doubled since then.

— Blue Chip Stamps: Buffett and Munger, Berkshire’s former vice chairman, took control of Blue Chip in 1970 when the customer rewards program was generating $126 million in sales. But as trading stamps fell out of favor with retailers and consumers, sales steadily declined; in 2006, they totaled a mere $25,920. However, Buffett and Munger used the float that Blue Chip generated to acquire See’s Candy, Wesco Financial and Precision Castparts, which are all steady contributors to Berkshire.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



Source link

Tags: BerkshireBuffettsCEOHathawayInvestmentsWarrenWorstYears
ShareTweetShare
Previous Post

Shibarium Transactions Surge 27%, What’s Next for SHIB Price?

Next Post

Warren Buffett has created a $348bn question for his successor

Related Posts

edit post
Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making ‘the stupidest decision I’ve ever heard anyone made’

Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making ‘the stupidest decision I’ve ever heard anyone made’

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

Before David Risher was tasked with scripting a “comeback story” for ride-sharing company Lyft, he made a career move so...

edit post
AI godfather warns humanity risks extinction by hyperintelligent machines with their own ‘preservation goals’ within 10 years

AI godfather warns humanity risks extinction by hyperintelligent machines with their own ‘preservation goals’ within 10 years

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

The so-called “godfather of AI”, Yoshua Bengio, claims tech companies racing for AI dominance could be bringing us closer to...

edit post
Conagra Reaffirms Outlook Even As Tariffs Add To Inflation

Conagra Reaffirms Outlook Even As Tariffs Add To Inflation

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

Conagra Brands Inc. (NYSE:CAG) on Wednesday posted first-quarter fiscal 2026 results that topped Wall Street expectations but showed year-over-year declines....

edit post
US markets regulators start shuttering as government shutdown cuts federal funding

US markets regulators start shuttering as government shutdown cuts federal funding

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

U.S. market regulators began the process of furloughing workers on Wednesday as the federal government shut down after Congress failed...

edit post
Central Asia’s maiden crypto fund launched in Kazakhstan

Central Asia’s maiden crypto fund launched in Kazakhstan

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

Central Asia's maiden Crypto fund has been launched in Kazakhstan.Alem Crypto Fund has started operating in Kazakhstan. It was established...

edit post
I’m the CEO of an AI startup that finds blind spots in visual data. If missed, it can cripple your AI models

I’m the CEO of an AI startup that finds blind spots in visual data. If missed, it can cripple your AI models

by TheAdviserMagazine
October 1, 2025
0

Every company wants to make breakthroughs with AI. But if your data is bad, your AI initiatives are doomed from...

Next Post
edit post
Warren Buffett has created a 8bn question for his successor

Warren Buffett has created a $348bn question for his successor

edit post
The 8bn question for Warren Buffett’s successor

The $348bn question for Warren Buffett’s successor

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
edit post
What Happens If a Spouse Dies Without a Will in North Carolina?

What Happens If a Spouse Dies Without a Will in North Carolina?

September 14, 2025
edit post
California May Reimplement Mask Mandates

California May Reimplement Mask Mandates

September 5, 2025
edit post
Who Needs a Trust Instead of a Will in North Carolina?

Who Needs a Trust Instead of a Will in North Carolina?

September 1, 2025
edit post
Does a Will Need to Be Notarized in North Carolina?

Does a Will Need to Be Notarized in North Carolina?

September 8, 2025
edit post
DACA recipients no longer eligible for Marketplace health insurance and subsidies

DACA recipients no longer eligible for Marketplace health insurance and subsidies

September 11, 2025
edit post
‘Quiet luxury’ is coming for the housing market, The Corcoran Group CEO says. It’s not just the Hamptons, Aspen, and Miami anymore

‘Quiet luxury’ is coming for the housing market, The Corcoran Group CEO says. It’s not just the Hamptons, Aspen, and Miami anymore

September 9, 2025
edit post
Why Did the IRS Reject My Tax Return?

Why Did the IRS Reject My Tax Return?

0
edit post
What Happens To Social Security If There Is A Government Shutdown?

What Happens To Social Security If There Is A Government Shutdown?

0
edit post
How to Invest in Real Estate on Lower Income (,000 or Less)

How to Invest in Real Estate on Lower Income ($50,000 or Less)

0
edit post
Automated Investing (A Lazy Person’s Guide to Building Wealth)

Automated Investing (A Lazy Person’s Guide to Building Wealth)

0
edit post
Moby Raises M to Bring Actionable Wall Street Research to Retail Investors – AlleyWatch

Moby Raises $5M to Bring Actionable Wall Street Research to Retail Investors – AlleyWatch

0
edit post
Agentic Commerce? Conversational Commerce? The Future Of Owned Digital Shopping Experiences

Agentic Commerce? Conversational Commerce? The Future Of Owned Digital Shopping Experiences

0
edit post
Judge nixes ex-Well Fargo broker’s tax write-off claim

Judge nixes ex-Well Fargo broker’s tax write-off claim

October 1, 2025
edit post
Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making ‘the stupidest decision I’ve ever heard anyone made’

Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making ‘the stupidest decision I’ve ever heard anyone made’

October 1, 2025
edit post
Government Shutdown and Seniors: What You Need to Know About Social Security and Healthcare

Government Shutdown and Seniors: What You Need to Know About Social Security and Healthcare

October 1, 2025
edit post
Telegram to Let Users Trade Tokenized U.S. Stocks Directly in Its Crypto Wallet

Telegram to Let Users Trade Tokenized U.S. Stocks Directly in Its Crypto Wallet

October 1, 2025
edit post
9 Ways I Extend the Shelf Life of My Grocery Stockpile

9 Ways I Extend the Shelf Life of My Grocery Stockpile

October 1, 2025
edit post
Agentic Commerce? Conversational Commerce? The Future Of Owned Digital Shopping Experiences

Agentic Commerce? Conversational Commerce? The Future Of Owned Digital Shopping Experiences

October 1, 2025
The Adviser Magazine

The first and only national digital and print magazine that connects individuals, families, and businesses to Fee-Only financial advisers, accountants, attorneys and college guidance counselors.

CATEGORIES

  • 401k Plans
  • Business
  • College
  • Cryptocurrency
  • Economy
  • Estate Plans
  • Financial Planning
  • Investing
  • IRS & Taxes
  • Legal
  • Market Analysis
  • Markets
  • Medicare
  • Money
  • Personal Finance
  • Social Security
  • Startups
  • Stock Market
  • Trading

LATEST UPDATES

  • Judge nixes ex-Well Fargo broker’s tax write-off claim
  • Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making ‘the stupidest decision I’ve ever heard anyone made’
  • Government Shutdown and Seniors: What You Need to Know About Social Security and Healthcare
  • Our Great Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use, Legal Notices & Disclosures
  • Contact us
  • About Us

© Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved
See articles for original source and related links to external sites.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Financial Planning
    • Financial Planning
    • Personal Finance
  • Market Research
    • Business
    • Investing
    • Money
    • Economy
    • Markets
    • Stocks
    • Trading
  • 401k Plans
  • College
  • IRS & Taxes
  • Estate Plans
  • Social Security
  • Medicare
  • Legal

© Copyright 2024 All Rights Reserved
See articles for original source and related links to external sites.