INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
By Katherine Chiglinsky and Noah BuhayarBerkshire Hathaway Inc
out profits, rather than hunt for more acquisitions
well-managed companies and stitching them into an ever-growing conglomerate
But in recent years, the massive company has turned out profit faster than it could redeploy the money
The war chest swelled past $100 billion last year, prompting some die-hard investors to wonder whether Buffett should just pay some out
$4 billion, including Berkshire shares
climbed 1.5 percent to $193.28 at 7:40 p.m
But opportunities to acquire shares remained scarce as the company initially prohibited purchases at stock prices above 110 percent of book
It raised the limit to 120 percent in December 2012
Since then, some investors have viewed the threshold as a floor under the stock -- keeping the price out of reach for buybacks.
Buffett had
been toying with the idea of loosening the rules further, saying in a February interview with CNBC that the company might have to tweak the
harmful to continuing shareholders
So, we think the stock is intrinsically worth X, and we would have to pay some multiple --- some modest multiple, even above that --- to
acquisitions, Berkshire also invests in shares of other companies
Its portfolio includes tens of billions of dollars in Apple Inc., Wells Fargo Co
Inc., said in an interview
