Berkshire Hathaway reported Saturday that the massive conglomerate posted a net loss of nearly $44 billion in the second quarter, red ink that was due mostly to a big drop in the value of Berkshire's significant stock portfolio.
Berkshire owns large stakes in Apple, Bank of America, Coca Cola, Chevron and American Express. Those five stocks make up nearly 70% of the portfolio. Occidental and Coke have both rallied in Q2 but Apple, Bank of America and American Express– each fell more than 21%.
In fact, Berkshire Hathaway is reportedly taking advantage of the share market slump to load up more equity shares. Most of Buffett’s stocks have rebounded in July.
The company's stock has held up better than the rest of the market in 2022. The super pricy class A shares, which trade for around $445,000 apiece because they don't split, are down about 2%. So are the shares of the class B stock, which cost a little less than $300 each and are in the S&P 500.
CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said in a report after the earnings release that she sees "stable results in most segments" for Berkshire.