Berkshire Hathaway’s investment in rating company Moody’s is of the topic of an WSJ blog article Warren Buffett to Break His Silence about Moody’s by Michael Corkery. On Buffett’s ownership, the article stated:
GuruFocus data shows, As of March 31, Berkshire owned 30.7 million shares that were valued at $915.8 million. At today’s closing of $19.3, the shares worth a little over $590 million, assuming he has not sold more shares since the end of the quarter.
GuruFocus data also shows that at of the end of 2009, Berkshire owned about 31.8 million shares, not 48 million shares mentioned in the article. At the time, the stock was traded at $26.8 per share, which means his investment at the end of the year worth about $852 million. I do not know which annual report that Mr. Corkery was referring in order to conclude that Buffett’s stake in MCO was valued at $3.39 billion.
Berkshire has been selling the stock for the past four quarters. It has reduced its position from 48 million shares in 2Q09 to less than 31 million shares in 1Q10. It sold shares in the second half of 2009, mostly in Q3 of 2009, before the announcement of Burlington Northern Santa Fe acquisition. It is highly improbable that the sale in 3Q09 is to raise money for the acquisition.
The truth is, Berkshire is still making a paper profit on the stock, but the profit is far less that was stated in the WSJ article and is shrinking given the fact that the stock has declined more than a third from March 31, 2009.
Here is Berkshire's holding history of MCO:
It appears GuruFocus have better information than WSJ has on this subject.
GuruFocus provides real time information and insights of Investment Gurus such as Warren Buffett for Premium Members. If you are not a premium member, click here to sign up or upgrade. 7-Day Free Trial is available.
How many shares does Buffett own? He owns 48 million of Moody’s shares, valued at $3.39 billion, totaling a 17% stake. Berkshire spent $499 million to buy those shares in 2000, giving him a paper profit of roughly $3 billion, according to the company’s annual report.I have to say that Mr. Corkery could have visited GuruFocus for better and up-to-date information.
He was recently a seller. Berkshire cut its stake in Moody’s to 16.98% from 20.02% in July 2009, marking the first time Buffett sold shares in the company since he acquired the stake in 2000. Buffett told shareholders in his annual letter that he sold the stake to raise money for acquisitions such as Burlington North Railroad.
GuruFocus data shows, As of March 31, Berkshire owned 30.7 million shares that were valued at $915.8 million. At today’s closing of $19.3, the shares worth a little over $590 million, assuming he has not sold more shares since the end of the quarter.
GuruFocus data also shows that at of the end of 2009, Berkshire owned about 31.8 million shares, not 48 million shares mentioned in the article. At the time, the stock was traded at $26.8 per share, which means his investment at the end of the year worth about $852 million. I do not know which annual report that Mr. Corkery was referring in order to conclude that Buffett’s stake in MCO was valued at $3.39 billion.
Berkshire has been selling the stock for the past four quarters. It has reduced its position from 48 million shares in 2Q09 to less than 31 million shares in 1Q10. It sold shares in the second half of 2009, mostly in Q3 of 2009, before the announcement of Burlington Northern Santa Fe acquisition. It is highly improbable that the sale in 3Q09 is to raise money for the acquisition.
The truth is, Berkshire is still making a paper profit on the stock, but the profit is far less that was stated in the WSJ article and is shrinking given the fact that the stock has declined more than a third from March 31, 2009.
Here is Berkshire's holding history of MCO:
It appears GuruFocus have better information than WSJ has on this subject.
GuruFocus provides real time information and insights of Investment Gurus such as Warren Buffett for Premium Members. If you are not a premium member, click here to sign up or upgrade. 7-Day Free Trial is available.
