INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Authors: JordanOmaha, Nebraska: Warren Buffett said he would be happy if his conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Inc owned more than 5 percent
of Apple Inc's stock, including if the iPhone maker bought back more of its shares
Buffett made his assessment before tens of thousands of Berkshire shareholders attending the conglomerate's annual meeting on Saturday in
Omaha, Nebraska.It came two days after Buffett revealed having bought 75 million additional Apple shares, and four days after Apple said it
may buy back $100 billion of stock."I'm delighted to see them repurchasing shares," Buffett told Berkshire shareholders at the
conglomerate's annual meeting."I love the idea of having our 5 percent, or whatever it is, maybe grow to 6 or 7 percent without our laying
But you have to have a very, very special product, which has an enormously widespread ecosystem, and the product is extremely
sticky."Apple's share price hit a record high after Buffett revealed having boosted Berkshire's already large stake in the Cupertino,
California-based company to roughly 240 million shares, now worth some $44 billion.While Buffett "very much" approves of Apple repurchasing
shares, he and Munger expressed skepticism that Apple could find meaningful acquisitions on which to spend cash."The reason companies are
buying their stocks is that they are smart enough to know it's better for them than anything else," Munger said
He said he and Buffett do not approve of all repurchase strategies.Buffett's initial commitment to Apple surprised many given his usual
aversion to companies in the technology sector, but the billionaire views Apple more as a consumer products company.The investment also
helps Buffett deploy Berkshire's cash and equivalents while he looks for his first major acquisition since paying $32.1 billion for
aircraft parts maker Precision Castparts Corp in January 2016.Even after the Apple investment, Berkshire's holdings of cash and
equivalents was $108.6 billion, the company said on Saturday.Buffett made his comments in response to a shareholder question posted by CNBC
published from a syndicated feed.)
