By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) -Berkshire Hathaway’s share price hit a record high on Monday, reflecting investors’ confidence in Warren Buffett’s company, which is often regarded as a microcosm of the broader American economy.
The price of Berkshire’s Class A shares rose 1.5% to $649,000 in late morning trading, surpassing the $647,039 price reached on Feb. 26. Berkshire’s more widely held Class B shares are worth about 1/1,500th as much.
Monday’s gain boosted the market value of Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire to approximately $930 billion, based on reported shares outstanding. The stock trades at more than 22 times projected full-year operating profit.
Some stock price services show Berkshire’s record high price was $741,971 on June 3. That appears to reflect a glitch that also caused the price of the Class B shares to briefly fall more than 99%.
Berkshire owns dozens of insurance, energy, manufacturing, retail and service businesses including Geico car insurance, the BNSF railroad, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and Dairy Queen ice cream.
It also owns a huge stock portfolio led by Apple, whose share price has risen by more than one-third since the end of March.
Despite having donated more than half his Berkshire stock since 2006, the 93-year-old Buffett still owns about 14.5% of the company, worth about $135 billion. His overall fortune is about $136 billion, Forbes magazine estimated on Monday.
Berkshire shares have performed approximately in line with the Standard & Poor’s 500 in 2024 after accounting for dividends.
Over the last decade they have also performed close to the index, but with less volatility. Berkshire does not pay a dividend.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jan Harvey)
