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Berkshire Hathaway ROE %

: 29.81% (As of Sep. 2020)
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ROE % is calculated as Net Income attributable to Common Stockholders (Net Income minus dividends to participating security holders) divided by its average Total Stockholders Equity over a certain period of time. Berkshire Hathaway's annualized net income attributable to common stockholders for the quarter that ended in Sep. 2020 was $120,548 Mil. Berkshire Hathaway's average Total Stockholders Equity over the quarter that ended in Sep. 2020 was $404,325 Mil. Therefore, Berkshire Hathaway's annualized ROE % for the quarter that ended in Sep. 2020 was 29.81%.

NYSE:BRK.A' s ROE % Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 1.15   Med: 8.98   Max: 21.05
Current: 8.95
1.15
21.05

During the past 13 years, Berkshire Hathaway's highest ROE % was 21.05%. The lowest was 1.15%. And the median was 8.98%.

NYSE:BRK.A's ROE % is ranked higher than
57% of the 463 Companies
in the Insurance industry.

( Industry Median: 7.40 vs. NYSE:BRK.A: 8.95 )

Berkshire Hathaway ROE % Historical Data

* All numbers are in millions except for per share data and ratio. All numbers are in their local exchange's currency.

* Premium members only.

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Data
Dec10 Dec11 Dec12 Dec13 Dec14 Dec15 Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19
ROE % Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 9.72 8.96 14.26 1.15 21.05

Berkshire Hathaway Quarterly Data
Dec15 Mar16 Jun16 Sep16 Dec16 Mar17 Jun17 Sep17 Dec17 Mar18 Jun18 Sep18 Dec18 Mar19 Jun19 Sep19 Dec19 Mar20 Jun20 Sep20
ROE % Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 16.94 28.36 -49.97 27.50 29.81
Competitive Comparison
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap.

Berkshire Hathaway ROE % Distribution

* The bar in red indicates where Berkshire Hathaway's ROE % falls into.


Berkshire Hathaway ROE % Calculation

Berkshire Hathaway's annualized ROE % for the fiscal year that ended in Dec. 2019 is calculated as

ROE %=Net Income attributable to Common Stockholders (A: Dec. 2019 )/( (Total Stockholders Equity (A: Dec. 2018 )+Total Stockholders Equity (A: Dec. 2019 ))/ count )
=81417/( (348703+424791)/ 2 )
=81417/386747
=21.05 %

Berkshire Hathaway's annualized ROE % for the quarter that ended in Sep. 2020 is calculated as

ROE %=Net Income attributable to Common Stockholders (Q: Sep. 2020 )/( (Total Stockholders Equity (Q: Jun. 2020 )+Total Stockholders Equity (Q: Sep. 2020 ))/ count )
=120548/( (393495+415155)/ 2 )
=120548/404325
=29.81 %

* All numbers are in millions except for per share data and ratio. All numbers are in their local exchange's currency.

In the calculation of annual ROE %, the net income attributable to common stockholders of the last fiscal year and the average total shareholder equity over the fiscal year are used. In calculating the quarterly data, the net income attributable to common stockholders data used here is four times the quarterly (Sep. 2020) net income attributable to common stockholders data. ROE % is displayed in the 30-year financial page.

Berkshire Hathaway  (NYSE:BRK.A) ROE % Explanation

ROE % measures the rate of return on the ownership interest (shareholder's equity) of the common stock owners. It measures a firm's efficiency at generating profits from every unit of shareholders' equity (also known as net assets or assets minus liabilities). ROE % shows how well a company uses investment funds to generate earnings growth. ROE %s between 15% and 20% are considered desirable.

The factors that affect a company's ROE % can be illustrated with the three-step DuPont Analysis:

ROE %**(Q: Sep. 2020 )
=Net Income/Total Stockholders Equity
=120548/404325
=(Net Income / Revenue )*(Revenue / Total Assets)*(Total Assets / Total Stockholders Equity)
=(120548 / 378424)*(378424 / 809039.5)*(809039.5 / 404325)
=Net Margin %*Asset Turnover*Equity Multiplier
=31.86 %*0.4677*2.001
=ROA %*Equity Multiplier
=14.9 %*2.001
=29.81 %

With this breakdown, it is clear that if a company grows its Net Profit Margin, its Asset Turnover, or its Leverage, it can grow its ROE %.

The factors that affect a company's ROE % can also be illustrated with the five-step DuPont Analysis:

ROE %**(Q: Sep. 2020 )
=Net Income/Total Stockholders Equity
=120548/404325
=(Net Income /Pre-Tax Income) * (Pre-Tax Income/Operating Income) * (Operating Income/Revenue) * (Revenue/Total Assets) * (Total Assets/Total Stockholders Equity)
= (120548 / 151720) * (151720 / 0) * (0 / 378424) * (378424 / 809039.5) * (809039.5 / 404325)
= Tax Burden * Interest Burden * Operating Margin % * Asset Turnover * Equity Multiplier
= 0.7945 * N/A * 0 % * 0.4677 * 2.001
=29.81 %

Note: The net income attributable to common stockholders data used here is four times the quarterly (Sep. 2020) net income attributable to common stockholders data. The Revenue data used here is four times the quarterly (Sep. 2020) revenue data. The same rule applies to Pre-Tax Income and Operating Income.

* All numbers are in millions except for per share data and ratio. All numbers are in their local exchange's currency.

** The ROE % used above is for Du Pont Analysis only. It is different from the defined ROE % page on our website, as here it uses Net Income instead of Net Income attributable to Common Stockholders in the calculation.

Be Aware

Net income attributable to common stockholders is used.

Because a company can increase its ROE % by having more financial leverage, it is important to watch the equity multiplier when investing in high ROE % companies. Like ROA %, ROE % is calculated with only 12 months data. Fluctuations in company's earnings or business cycles can affect the ratio drastically. It is important to look at the ratio from a long term perspective.

Asset light businesses require very few assets to generate very high earnings. Their ROE %s can be extremely high.

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