저자: 미상 · 외국인
요약 보기
버크셔해서웨이 시총 1조 달러 돌파 소식을 다루며, 비기술주 재평가와 S&P493 신고가 근접을 언급. 버핏의 애플·뱅크오브아메리카 지분 매도와 현금 2,770억 달러 보유를 조명하고, 경기 둔화·금리 고점·자본이득세 부담 등 매도 배경을 해설. 명확한 자산 가격 방향 예측 발언은 없음.
다듬은 글
영어 자막이므로 영어로 다듬습니다.
The world's greatest investor, the Oracle or the Sage of Omaha, is the immensely popular American billionaire Warren Buffett. Buffett is more than an investor. He is a beacon, especially if you are interested in the stock market. Warren Buffett turned 94 on August 30 last month. As a birthday gift, stock market investors took the value of his company to new heights.
On August 28, his flagship firm Berkshire Hathaway crossed the $1 trillion mark in the stock market. The firm has joined the prestigious club of companies with a market value of over $1 trillion. This group includes names like Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta Platforms. Berkshire Hathaway has become the first non-tech firm to join the trillion dollar club.
The key point is that non-tech has started revaluing since the market bottom on August 5th. If you look at the S&P 493 or the S&P 490, they are actually very close to a new high, whereas the Magnificent Seven category is still 7-8% below its all-time high. According to analysts, there was no single factor that helped Berkshire reach this milestone.
There were several factors behind this, such as the firm's strong earnings and investors wanting to invest in a non-tech company. In my lifetime, I was born in 1930. Another factor has been in the headlines in recent months. Warren Buffett is on a selling spree. He has sold hundreds of billions of dollars worth of shares in Apple and Bank of America.
Berkshire Hathaway now has a massive cash reserve of about $277 billion. Market analysts are wondering what could be behind this move. So, with the 94-year-old legendary investor back in the headlines, let's find out how Warren Buffett rose to the top and what is behind his recent stock market sell-off.
Born in Nebraska, USA in 1930, Warren Buffett had the art of making money right from the beginning. His father, Howard Buffett, was also a businessman and stockbroker, and Warren bought his first stock at just 11 years old. In 1950, Warren Buffett applied to Columbia University. He wanted to learn from the best in the business, Benjamin Graham.
Graham is often called the father of value investing. His seminal works, *The Intelligent Investor* and *Security Analysis*, introduced this concept, and Buffett was inspired by it. Value investing involves buying undervalued stocks. However, the firm whose shares you buy must have strong fundamentals. These include metrics such as quality business models and healthy balance sheets.
The idea is that the market will eventually recognize the true value of the stock. After earning a master's degree in economics, Buffett worked as a securities analyst and stockbroker. He started his own investment firm, the Buffett Partnership, in 1956. In the 1960s, Buffett began buying shares of a small textile firm called Berkshire Hathaway.
At that time, the firm was not what it is today. It was struggling for survival. In 1965, Warren Buffett completely took over Berkshire. Under his leadership, the firm changed direction. Instead of focusing on textiles, Buffett turned to the insurance business. He acquired National Indemnity in 1967.
This gave Berkshire a steady source of cash for investments. Buffett used this money to buy stakes in firms such as Coca-Cola and the Washington Post. He later bought companies such as candy maker See's Candies and insurer GEICO. By 2024, Berkshire Hathaway had grown into a giant conglomerate with over 60 subsidiaries.
This includes everything from insurance with GEICO and National Indemnity to transportation with BNSF's vast rail network and retail chains like See's Candies and Dairy Queen. Berkshire also holds large stakes in some of the largest publicly traded companies, like Apple, Amazon, Bank of America, American Express, and Coca-Cola. Apart from this, it also has stakes in foreign firms like BYD, Mitsubishi, Mitsui and Sumitomo.
By the year 2008, Warren Buffett had become the richest man in the world. At that time, Forbes Magazine estimated his wealth at $62 billion. Berkshire Hathaway stock, the source of Warren Buffett's wealth, has been rising rapidly. In this past year, Buffett's net worth has grown by $10 billion. Bill Gates' wealth has increased by $2 billion, but that was not enough to keep him at number one.
By June 2024, Berkshire accounted for 99.5% of Warren Buffett's $150 billion fortune. Buffett held a 37.9% stake in the company, according to Bloomberg's Billionaire Index. Berkshire Hathaway has come a long way. Its share price has risen by nearly 4 million% in the last six decades. Berkshire shareholders have earned an average return of 20% each year. According to one estimate, if someone had invested $100 in Berkshire 60 years ago, it would be worth around $4.38 million today.
However, today Berkshire is in the news for different reasons. The company recently reduced its stake in companies like Apple and Bank of America. Berkshire has sold 116 million shares of Bank of America since July. Additionally, Buffett also reduced Berkshire's stake in Apple by more than 50% earlier this year, selling more than 116 million shares of the iPhone maker.
The sale brings Berkshire Hathaway's cash reserves to a record $277 billion, up from $189 billion three months ago. Some experts say the sale reflects Buffett's cautious stance amid current market conditions. The US economy has been cooling off over the past few quarters. The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates to their highest level in a decade to combat inflation. Recently, some market watchers have expressed fears that the country may be in the grip of recession. In such a situation, Berkshire's cash reserve will act as a fortress.
Meanwhile, some argue that Berkshire's move has more to do with capital gains and tax liabilities. After selling his stake in Apple, he is estimated to have a tax liability of $50 billion in capital gains. In the Bank of America sale, the tax liability could be between $5 and $6 billion. Experts say Buffett is preparing for a possible change in leadership after the November 5 election. Democrats are running on policies that tax the wealthy more heavily. Therefore, capital gains tax on billionaires may increase in the future.
Whatever the reason, market watchers are closely monitoring the Wall Street giant's moves. Some are hoping to learn something from it, while others are trying to predict the market.
Comments 0