Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (/ˈbɜːrkʃər/) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. The company wholly owns GEICO, Duracell, Dairy Queen, BNSF Railway, Lubrizol, Fruit of the Loom, Helzberg Diamonds, Long & Foster, FlightSafety International, Shaw Industries, Pampered Chef, Forest River, and NetJets, and also owns 38.6% of Pilot Flying J;[4] and significant minority holdings in public companies Kraft Heinz Company (26.7%), American Express (18.8%), The Coca-Cola Company (9.32%), Bank of America (11.9%), and Apple (5.56%).[5]
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 Kiewit Tower, the location of Berkshire's corporate offices in Omaha, Nebraska | |
| Formerly | Valley Falls Company (1839–1929) Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates (1929–1955) |
|---|---|
| Type | Public |
| ISIN | US0846707026 |
| Industry | Conglomerate |
| Predecessor |
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| Founded | 1839 Cumberland, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Founder | Oliver Chace[1]
Warren Buffett (as a holding company) |
| Headquarters | Kiewit Plaza, Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. |
Area served | Global |
Key people | Warren E. Buffett (Chairman & CEO) Charles T. Munger (Vice Chairman) |
| Products | Diversified investments, Property & casualty insurance, Utilities, Restaurants, Food processing, Aerospace, Toys, Media, Automotive, Sporting goods, Consumer products, Internet, Real estate |
| Revenue |  US$276.09 billion (2021)[2] |
| US$111.7 billion (2021)[2] | |
| US$89.8 billion (2021)[2] | |
| Total assets | US$958.8 billion (2021)[2] |
| Total equity | US$514.9 billion (2021)[2] |
| Owner | Warren Buffett (30.71% of the aggregate voting power and 16.45% of the economic interest)[3] |
Number of employees | 372,000 (2021)[2] |
| Subsidiaries | List of subsidiaries |
| Website | berkshirehathaway |
| Footnotes / references [2] | |
From 2016, the company acquired large holdings in the major US airlines United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and American Airlines,[6] but these were sold early in 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.[7][8] Berkshire Hathaway has averaged an annual growth in book value of 19.0% to its shareholders since 1965 (compared to 9.7% from the S&P 500 with dividends included for the same period), while employing large amounts of capital, and minimal debt.[9]
The company is known for its control and leadership by Warren Buffett, who serves as chairman and chief executive, and Charlie Munger, the company's vice chairman. In the early part of his career at Berkshire, Buffett focused on long-term investments in publicly traded companies, but more recently he has more frequently bought whole companies. Berkshire now owns a diverse range of businesses including confectionery, retail, railroads, home furnishings, encyclopedias, manufacturers of vacuum cleaners, jewelry sales, manufacture and distribution of uniforms, and several regional electric and gas utilities.
According to the Forbes Global 2000 list and formula, Berkshire Hathaway is the eighth-largest public company in the world, the tenth-largest conglomerate by revenue and the largest financial services company by revenue in the world.[10][11]
As of August 2020, Berkshire's Class B stock is the seventh-largest component of the S&P 500 Index (which is based on free-float market capitalization) and the company is famous for having the most expensive share price in history with Class A shares costing around $500,000 each. This is because there has never been a stock split in its Class A shares[12] and Buffett stated in a 1984 letter to shareholders that he does not intend to split the stock.[13]
On 16 March 2022, Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares closed above record $500,000 a share, resulting in company's market cap above $730 billion.[14]