Berkshire Hathaway
Market Cap
US$554.6b
Last Updated
2020/02/17 23:34 UTC
Data Sources
Company Financials +
Executive Summary
Berkshire Hathaway Inc., through its subsidiaries engages in insurance, freight rail transportation, and utility businesses.
Snowflake Analysis
Questionable track record with worrying balance sheet.
Similar Companies
Share Price & News
How has Berkshire Hathaway's share price performed over time and what events caused price changes?
Latest Share Price and Events
Stable Share Price: BRK.A has not had significant price volatility in the past 3 months.
Market Performance
7 Day Return
-0.04%
BRK.A
0.01%
US Diversified Financial
0.9%
US Market
1 Year Return
10.4%
BRK.A
11.1%
US Diversified Financial
20.0%
US Market
Return vs Industry: BRK.A matched the US Diversified Financial industry which returned 11.1% over the past year.
Return vs Market: BRK.A underperformed the US Market which returned 20.1% over the past year.
Shareholder returns
| BRK.A | Industry | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Day | -0.04% | 0.01% | 0.9% |
| 30 Day | -1.4% | -1.1% | 1.4% |
| 90 Day | 3.5% | 4.0% | 8.8% |
| 1 Year | 10.4%10.4% | 11.3%11.1% | 22.5%20.0% |
| 3 Year | 34.6%34.6% | 33.4%33.0% | 49.9%40.3% |
| 5 Year | 53.9%53.9% | 51.5%50.8% | 73.2%54.1% |
Price Volatility Vs. Market
How volatile is Berkshire Hathaway's share price compared to the market and industry in the last 5 years?
Simply Wall St News
4 months ago | Simply Wall St
What Kind Of Investor Owns Most Of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A)?4 months ago | Simply Wall St
Don't Sell Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) Before You Read This5 months ago | Simply Wall St
Is It Too Late To Consider Buying Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A)?Valuation
Is Berkshire Hathaway undervalued compared to its fair value and its price relative to the market?
20.73x
Price to Earnings (PE) ratio
Share Price vs. Fair Value
Below Fair Value: BRK.A ($340223.94) is trading above our estimate of fair value ($258731.2)
Significantly Below Fair Value: BRK.A is trading above our estimate of fair value.
Price To Earnings Ratio
PE vs Industry: BRK.A is poor value based on its PE Ratio (20.7x) compared to the Diversified Financial industry average (9.4x).
PE vs Market: BRK.A is poor value based on its PE Ratio (20.7x) compared to the US market (18.4x).
Price to Earnings Growth Ratio
PEG Ratio: BRK.A's earnings are forecast to decline next year, so we can't calculate its PEG ratio.
Price to Book Ratio
PB vs Industry: BRK.A is overvalued based on its PB Ratio (1.4x) compared to the US Diversified Financial industry average (0.8x).
Next Steps
Future Growth
How is Berkshire Hathaway forecast to perform in the next 1 to 3 years based on estimates from 2 analysts?
-72.9%
Forecasted annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue Growth Forecasts
Analyst Future Growth Forecasts
Earnings vs Savings Rate: BRK.A's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years (-72.9% per year).
Earnings vs Market: BRK.A's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years (-72.9% per year).
High Growth Earnings: BRK.A's earnings are forecast to decline over the next 3 years.
Revenue vs Market: BRK.A's revenue (4.4% per year) is forecast to grow slower than the US market (7.6% per year).
High Growth Revenue: BRK.A's revenue (4.4% per year) is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year.
Earnings per Share Growth Forecasts
Future Return on Equity
Future ROE: BRK.A's Return on Equity is forecast to be low in 3 years time (6.4%).
Next Steps
Past Performance
How has Berkshire Hathaway performed over the past 5 years?
10.7%
Historical annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue History
Quality Earnings: BRK.A has high quality earnings.
Growing Profit Margin: BRK.A's current net profit margins (10.6%) are lower than last year (25.5%).
Past Earnings Growth Analysis
Earnings Trend: BRK.A's earnings have grown by 10.7% per year over the past 5 years.
Accelerating Growth: BRK.A's has had negative earnings growth over the past year, so it can't be compared to its 5-year average.
Earnings vs Industry: BRK.A had negative earnings growth (-56.6%) over the past year, making it difficult to compare to the Diversified Financial industry average (38%).
Return on Equity
High ROE: BRK.A's Return on Equity (6.8%) is considered low.
Return on Assets
Return on Capital Employed
Next Steps
Financial Health
How is Berkshire Hathaway's financial position? (This company is analysed differently as a bank or financial institution)
Financial Position Analysis
Debt to Equity History and Analysis
Balance Sheet
Inventory Level: BRK.A has a high level of physical assets or inventory.
Debt Coverage by Assets: BRK.A's debt is covered by short term assets (assets are 1.8x debt).
Financial Institutions Analysis
Asset Level: BRK.A's level of assets compared to its equity is low.
Allowance for Bad Loans: Insufficient data to determine if BRK.A has a sufficient allowance for bad loans.
Low Risk Liabilities: BRK.A reports no customer deposits, loans are made up entirely of externally borrowed funds.
Loan Level: Insufficient data to determine if BRK.A has an acceptable proportion of non-loan assets held.
Low Risk Deposits: BRK.A has advanced significantly more loans than the customer deposits it holds.
Level of Bad Loans: Insufficient data to determine if BRK.A has an appropriate level of bad loans.
Next Steps
Dividend
What is Berkshire Hathaway's current dividend yield, its reliability and sustainability?
Dividend Yield vs Market
Current dividend yield vs market & industry
Notable Dividend: Unable to evaluate BRK.A's dividend yield against the bottom 25% of dividend payers, as the company has not reported any payouts.
High Dividend: Unable to evaluate BRK.A's dividend yield against the top 25% of dividend payers, as the company has not reported any payouts.
Stability and Growth of Payments
Stable Dividend: Insufficient data to determine if BRK.A's dividends per share have been stable in the past.
Growing Dividend: Insufficient data to determine if BRK.A's dividend payments have been increasing.
Current Payout to Shareholders
Dividend Coverage: Insufficient data to calculate payout ratio to determine if its dividend payments are covered by earnings.
Future Payout to Shareholders
Future Dividend Coverage: No need to calculate the sustainability of BRK.A's dividend in 3 years as they are not forecast to pay a notable one for the US market.
Next Steps
Management
How experienced are the management team and are they aligned to shareholders interests?
4.7yrs
Average management tenure
CEO
Warren Buffett (89yo)
50.1yrs
Tenure
US$388,968
Compensation
Mr. Warren E. Buffett has been the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. since 1970. Mr. Buffett is the Owner of IMC Group. He serves as Manager and Member of the Board ...
CEO Compensation Analysis
Compensation vs Market: Warren's total compensation ($USD388.97K) is below average for companies of similar size in the US market ($USD10.78M).
Compensation vs Earnings: Warren's compensation has been consistent with company performance over the past year.
Leadership Team
| Name | Position | Tenure | Compensation | Ownership |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | 50.1yrs | US$388.97k | 15.91% $88.2b | |
| Senior VP & CFO | 0yrs | US$2.26m | no data | |
| Vice Chairman of Insurance Operations & Director | 2.1yrs | US$18.01m | 0.019% $107.8m | |
| Vice Chairman of Non Insurance Business Operations & Director | 2.1yrs | US$18.01m | 0.00037% $2.1m | |
| VP, Controller & Principal Accounting Officer | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| Chairman | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| Treasurer | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| CEO & President of Specialty Insurance | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| CEO & President of General Re Unit | 0yrs | no data | no data |
4.7yrs
Average Tenure
67yo
Average Age
Experienced Management: BRK.A's management team is considered experienced (4.7 years average tenure).
Board Members
| Name | Position | Tenure | Compensation | Ownership |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | 50.1yrs | US$388.97k | 15.91% $88.2b | |
| Vice Chairman of Insurance Operations & Director | 2.1yrs | US$18.01m | 0.019% $107.8m | |
| Vice Chairman of Non Insurance Business Operations & Director | 2.1yrs | US$18.01m | 0.00037% $2.1m | |
| Chairman | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| Independent Director | 32.1yrs | US$3.30k | 0.0061% $34.0m | |
| Executive Chairman of Burlington Northern Santa Fe | 0yrs | no data | no data | |
| Vice Chairman | 41.9yrs | US$100.00k | 0.28% $1.5b | |
| Director | 27.1yrs | US$3.30k | 0.053% $295.9m | |
| Independent Director | 17.1yrs | US$7.30k | 0.043% $236.4m | |
| Chairman of GEICO | 0yrs | no data | no data |
27.1yrs
Average Tenure
71yo
Average Age
Experienced Board: BRK.A's board of directors are seasoned and experienced ( 27.1 years average tenure).
Ownership
Who are the major shareholders and have insiders been buying or selling?
Insider Trading Volume
Insider Buying: Insufficient data to determine if insiders have bought more shares than they have sold in the past 3 months.
Ownership Breakdown
Dilution of Shares: Shareholders have not been meaningfully diluted in the past year.
Top Shareholders
Company Information
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s company bio, employee growth, exchange listings and data sources
Key Information
- Name: Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
- Ticker: BRK.A
- Exchange: NYSE
- Founded: 1889
- Industry: Multi-Sector Holdings
- Sector: Diversified Financials
- Market Cap: US$554.554b
- Shares outstanding: 1.63m
- Website: https://www.berkshirehathaway.com
Number of Employees
Location
- Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
- 3555 Farnam Street
- Omaha
- Nebraska
- 68131
- United States
Listings
| Ticker | Exchange | Primary Security | Security Type | Country | Currency | Listed on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRK.A | NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) | Yes | Class A Common Shares | US | USD | Oct 1976 |
| BRH | XTRA (XETRA Trading Platform) | Yes | Class A Common Shares | DE | EUR | Oct 1976 |
| BRH | DB (Deutsche Boerse AG) | Yes | Class A Common Shares | DE | EUR | Oct 1976 |
| BRKA | WBAG (Wiener Boerse AG) | Yes | Class A Common Shares | AT | EUR | Oct 1976 |
| 0HN0 | LSE (London Stock Exchange) | Yes | Class A Common Shares | GB | USD | Oct 1976 |
| BRK.B | NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) | Class B Common Shares | US | USD | May 1996 | |
| BRYN | DB (Deutsche Boerse AG) | Class B Common Shares | DE | EUR | May 1996 | |
| BRKB * | BMV (Bolsa Mexicana de Valores) | Class B Common Shares | MX | MXN | May 1996 | |
| BRYN | XTRA (XETRA Trading Platform) | Class B Common Shares | DE | EUR | May 1996 | |
| BRK/B | SWX (SIX Swiss Exchange) | Class B Common Shares | CH | CHF | May 1996 | |
| 0R37 | LSE (London Stock Exchange) | Class B Common Shares | GB | USD | May 1996 | |
| BRYN | ETLX (Eurotlx) | Class B Common Shares | IT | EUR | May 1996 | |
| BRKB | WBAG (Wiener Boerse AG) | Class B Common Shares | AT | EUR | May 1996 | |
| BERK34 | BOVESPA (Bolsa de Valores de Sao Paulo) | BDR EACH REPR 1 CLASS 'B' COM STK | BR | BRL | Oct 2013 |
Biography
Berkshire Hathaway Inc., through its subsidiaries engages in insurance, freight rail transportation, and utility businesses. It provides property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, as well as life, accident, and health reinsurance; and operates railroad systems in North America. The company also generates, transmits, stores, and distributes electricity from natural gas, coal, wind, solar, hydro, nuclear, and geothermal sources; operates natural gas distribution and storage facilities, interstate pipelines, and compressor and meter stations; and holds interest in coal mining assets. In addition, it offers real estate brokerage services; and leases transportation equipment and furniture. Further, the company manufactures boxed chocolates and other confectionery products; specialty chemicals, metal cutting tools, and components for aerospace and power generation applications; flooring, insulation, roofing and engineered, building and engineered components, paints and coatings, and bricks and masonry products, as well as offers homebuilding and manufactured housing finance; recreational vehicles, apparel products, jewelry, and custom picture framing products; and alkaline batteries. Additionally, it manufactures castings, forgings, fasteners/fastener systems, and aerostructures; titanium, steel, and nickel; and seamless pipes and fittings. The company distributes newspapers, televisions, and information; franchises and services quick service restaurants; distributes electronic components; and offers logistics services, grocery and foodservice distribution services, professional aviation training programs, and fractional aircraft ownership programs. In addition, it retails automobiles; furniture, bedding, and accessories; household appliances, electronics, and computers; jewelry, watches, crystal, china, stemware, flatware, gifts, and collectibles; kitchenware; and motorcycle accessories. The company was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.
Company Analysis and Financial Data Status
| Data | Last Updated (UTC time) |
|---|---|
| Company Analysis | 2020/02/17 23:34 |
| End of Day Share Price | 2020/02/14 00:00 |
| Earnings | 2019/09/30 |
| Annual Earnings | 2018/12/31 |
Unless specified all financial data is based on a yearly period but updated quarterly. This is known as Trailing Twelve Month (TTM) or Last Twelve Month (LTM) Data. Learn more here.