Berkshire Hathaway BRK second quarter 2021 results

Berkshire Hathaway’s operating profit continued to rebound as its myriad of businesses, from energy to railways, benefited from the economic reopening.

The conglomerate reported second-quarter operating profit of $ 6.69 billion, up 21% from $ 5.51 billion in the same period a year ago, according to its earnings report published Saturday.

Overall profit, which reflects Berkshire’s fluctuating stock investments, rose 6.8% year-on-year to $ 28 billion in the second quarter.

President and CEO Warren Buffett has continued to aggressively buy back Berkshire shares instead of making major acquisitions. The company repurchased $ 6 billion of its own shares in the second quarter, bringing the six-month total to $ 12.6 billion. Berkshire bought a record $ 24.7 billion of its own shares last year.

Berkshire’s cash position at the end of June stood at $ 144.1 billion, remaining stable from the previous quarter’s level and still close to a record despite the company’s massive buyout program.

The results came as the conglomerate’s shares wiped out all of its 2020 losses and hit an all-time high during the period. So far in the third quarter, Berkshire B shares have risen another 2%, bringing their cumulative gain to over 23%.

As economic activity continues to rebound from the pandemic with more cargo and cargo shipped across the country, Berkshire’s Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway is expected to benefit. Railways, utilities and energy profits jumped more than 27% from a year ago during the period to $ 2.26 billion, Berkshire said. Other companies in the conglomerate, including home builders, paint manufacturers and GEICO insurance, are also seeing a boost.

Although Berkshire has acknowledged that the quarterly results look great as they are rebounding from a weak base a year ago and the company is unsure when results will truly return to normal.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected almost all of our operations in 2020 and particularly in the second quarter, although the effects have varied considerably,” Berkshire said in the earnings report on Saturday. “The extent of longer-term effects cannot be reasonably estimated at this time.”

At the height of the Covid crisis, Berkshire experienced a drastic slowdown, with operating income falling 10% in the second quarter of 2020 year-on-year and falling 30% in the third quarter.

Berkshire said risks from the pandemic remain and could impact its results in the future.

“The risks and uncertainties resulting from the pandemic that may affect our future earnings, cash flow and financial condition include the ability to immunize significant numbers of people in the United States and around the world as well as the long-term effect. end of the pandemic on demand for some of our products and services, ”the conglomerate said.