Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reported a 2.5% drop in quarterly profit after the company earned less from its insurance operations.
Net income fell to $19.2 billion, or $13,349 per Class A share equivalent, from $19.69 billion, or $13,695 per Class A share, in the year-earlier period.
Berkshire ended 2025 with a record $373.1 billion in cash and Treasury bills after accounting for a payable for purchasing some of the short-term government debt, a 4% increase from three months earlier. The company refrained from repurchasing any of its own shares during the quarter, marking the sixth-straight period in which it didn't buy back any stock.
Buffett, 95, unveiled plans in May to hand off his role as Berkshire's longtime CEO to Greg Abel, one of his key lieutenants, at year-end. The company synonymous with Buffett's corporate stewardship and savvy investing stepped into a new era in January with Abel's ascendance. On Saturday, the former head of Berkshire's portfolio of operating companies delivered his first letter to shareholders.
"Warren," Abel wrote in the letter, " is obviously a very hard act to follow."
Operating earnings, which exclude some investment results, fell 30% to $10.2 billion from $14.53 billion. Profits from insurance underwriting and investment income declined, while Berkshire reported higher earnings from its BNSF railroad operations and its manufacturing, service and retailing businesses.
Buffett has said that operating earnings are the better measure of the company's performance. Accounting rules require Berkshire to include unrealized gains and losses from its giant investment portfolio when it reports net income, meaning that short-term fluctuations in the stock market can cause big swings in quarterly income.
Berkshire's Class A shares reached a record high of $809,350 on May 2, right before Buffett announced he was stepping down as CEO. The shares have since dropped 6.5%, closing Friday at $757,000. In that same period, the S&P 500 index rose 21%.
For the year, Berkshire was a net seller of stocks.