Berkshire Hathaway and Warren Buffett not done with Apple stock, 'would love to own 100 pe...

Posted:
in General Discussion edited May 2018
The "Oracle of Omaha," who was revealed last week to have made another big investment in Apple, indicated that he's looking at continued investment in Apple in the future.

Warren Buffett


At Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting, Buffett had more to say about his Apple plans.

"[Apple] was a company I liked, a business I liked, very much," Buffett said of Apple in an interview with CNBC. "It was a company I liked, a business I liked, very much, and we could buy a lot of it I clearly like Apple and why buy 'em to hold, and we bought about 5 percent of the company, and I'd like to own 100 percent of it."

Buffett went on to state that "that's the test -- would you like to own 100 percent of a company?"

"We're not buying a stock when we buy Apple, in our minds" Buffett continued. "We're buying 5 percent of a business. We buy 100 percent of some businesses, and when they're publicly held we buy 5 percent, but we bring the same thinking to it. We like very much the economics of their activities. And we like very much their management, and the way they think, and the way they act."

Buffett on his Apple stake: We currently own about 5% of the company, "but I'd love to own 100% of it" https://t.co/9SiIuaXfCo pic.twitter.com/A3zsAQfpPu

-- CNBC Now (@CNBCnow)


Warren Buffett revealed Thursday that his firm, Berkshire Hathaway, had purchased 75 million Apple shares during the first quarter, which raised the investment firm's total position to 240 million shares. The move makes Berkshire the third-largest Apple shareholder, behind Vanguard and BlackRock.

In separate comments at the shareholder meeting over the weekend, reported by Reuters, Buffett both praised Apple's recent share buyback, and had positive things to say about the company's "extremely sticky" products.

"I love the idea of having our 5 percent, or whatever it is, maybe grow to 6 or 7 percent without our laying out a dime," Buffett said of the share buyback. He added that he would buy more shares, if the price were right.

Following reports about Buffett's bet on the company, Apple's stock reached a new all-time high on Friday.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 33
    jbairdjrjbairdjr Posts: 1unconfirmed, member
    Warren Buffet is probably behind the plethora of false "Apple is dead because of the IPhone X" stories until their last earnings call.  He has accumulated his wealth doing exactly that.  Got a bunch of stock cheap and will be unloading it soon for a great profit.
  • Reply 2 of 33
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    jbairdjr said:
    Warren Buffet is probably behind the plethora of false "Apple is dead because of the IPhone X" stories until their last earnings call.  He has accumulated his wealth doing exactly that.  Got a bunch of stock cheap and will be unloading it soon for a great profit.
    You need to move that tin foil hat of yours over about 1/2 inch.
    chasmmwhiteMacProanantksundaramnetmage78BanditseanismorrisStrangeDaysmike1baconstang
  • Reply 3 of 33
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,275member
    If you are looking for who started the whole "iPhone X is a flop" thing, it was Nikkei, then the Wall Street Journal, then Bloomberg/Mark Gurman. In that order. Other sites (with varying degrees of headline accuracy) just echoed and amplified those three. I love that they were not just wrong, they literally could not have been more wrong. Take note of who lied and who pushed the lie, and don't believe them again (unless you like being fooled).

    Those people who are in AAPL for the long haul are enjoying a nice reward for their steady-handedness, egged on by Buffett. He wasn't the only one that saw things clearly and acted precipitously; Apple bought back $25B of their stock in the previous quarter.

    If they'd bought all of that $25B of stock at $155.15 (the lowest closing price since January), they'd have made an additional $4.8B by today. And the stock is still undervalued IMO.
    allmypeopleanantksundaramkencjony0fastasleepwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 33
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    To own 100% he needs mine ... make me an offer I can't refuse Warren...  ;)
    chasmmelodyof1974SpamSandwichjdgazmknelsonjony0jasenj1charlesgreslovemnwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 33
    gmgravytraingmgravytrain Posts: 882member
    I'm really enjoying how Old Man Buffett is making all the millenial analysts look really stupid. Buffett may not know much about tech but he understands sound investing, at least from my point of view. It always puzzled me why analysts and investors were moaning and groaning about million unit iPhone shortfalls from quarter to quarter when you'd think they should be able to see further than that. Practically anything can hurt a quarter, even the weather, global unrest or flu epidemic. iPhone sales shortfalls do not indicate Apple's overall health by any means. Basing those sales on supply chain data makes numbers even less reliable. These analysts are really stupid and might as well wait for Apple's guidance.

    It's so amusing how Buffett's firm was loading up on Apple shares while the gutless were tossing their Apple stock to the wind. I could understand if investors weren't buying Apple, but they should never have been selling on unsubstantiated rumors. Quarter-to-quarter iPhone sales don't scare me because I'm in Apple for the dividends and I'll get them even i the share price drops. I'm always somewhat surprised when the negative news comes out a couple of weeks before earnings and investors start getting antsy. It happens like clockwork so you'd think investors would realize something nefarious is going on. Well, it just goes to show how scared investors really don't think straight if they believe their wealth is at risk. Buffett and crew obviously can relax and see through the temporary chaos.

    I'm really glad a conservative investor like Buffet is backing Apple.  His buys are based on company fundamentals.  Maybe more investors will follow his lead or at least stop being such man-pussies and see that Apple could be much more than just the iPhone company. Honestly, small retail investors need to get a grip on reality. The FANG stocks are not the entire stock market. There are other ways to make money without having to rely on double-digit revenue growth. That can't be depended on from any company to last forever. Just beware of any analyst telling investors to drop Apple to get X stock. That's just criminal advice.
    edited May 2018 kencrandominternetpersonbaconstanglovemn
  • Reply 6 of 33
    gmgravytraingmgravytrain Posts: 882member
    chasm said:
    If you are looking for who started the whole "iPhone X is a flop" thing, it was Nikkei, then the Wall Street Journal, then Bloomberg/Mark Gurman. In that order. Other sites (with varying degrees of headline accuracy) just echoed and amplified those three. I love that they were not just wrong, they literally could not have been more wrong. Take note of who lied and who pushed the lie, and don't believe them again (unless you like being fooled).

    Those people who are in AAPL for the long haul are enjoying a nice reward for their steady-handedness, egged on by Buffett. He wasn't the only one that saw things clearly and acted precipitously; Apple bought back $25B of their stock in the previous quarter.

    If they'd bought all of that $25B of stock at $155.15 (the lowest closing price since January), they'd have made an additional $4.8B by today. And the stock is still undervalued IMO.
    You may see Apple as undervalued but the market sees Amazon as much more undervalued than Apple and to me, that's just crazy.  Such things make me question as to whether I understand anything at all about the stock market and company value.  Buffett said he wished he had bought Amazon and Google in the past, so I suppose the value is there, but I just can't see it.  As Buffett has said, he buys what he understands.  I believe I understand Apple and so far I have been right (lucky) for 14 years and counting.  Is Apple undervalued?  It sure is below the value of its peers although I can't explain why.  The fundamentals are there, but something else must be missing and I'm guessing it has to do with Apple's small market share percentage.  I don't see Apple's high-end business model changing, so Apple will most likely stay valued the way it is.



    kenc
  • Reply 7 of 33
    anantksundaramanantksundaram Posts: 20,403member
    jbairdjr said:
    Warren Buffet is probably behind the plethora of false "Apple is dead because of the IPhone X" stories until their last earnings call.  He has accumulated his wealth doing exactly that.  Got a bunch of stock cheap and will be unloading it soon for a great profit.
    You signed up to post this drivel?! Really?!

    Welcome. Not.
    randominternetpersonjony0mike1fastasleep
  • Reply 8 of 33
    anantksundaramanantksundaram Posts: 20,403member

    I'm really enjoying how Old Man Buffett is making all the millenial analysts look really stupid. Buffett may not know much about tech but he understands sound investing, at least from my point of view. It always puzzled me why analysts and investors were moaning and groaning about million unit iPhone shortfalls from quarter to quarter when you'd think they should be able to see further than that. Practically anything can hurt a quarter, even the weather, global unrest or flu epidemic. iPhone sales shortfalls do not indicate Apple's overall health by any means. Basing those sales on supply chain data makes numbers even less reliable. These analysts are really stupid and might as well wait for Apple's guidance.

    It's so amusing how Buffett's firm was loading up on Apple shares while the gutless were tossing their Apple stock to the wind. I could understand if investors weren't buying Apple, but they should never have been selling on unsubstantiated rumors. Quarter-to-quarter iPhone sales don't scare me because I'm in Apple for the dividends and I'll get them even i the share price drops. I'm always somewhat surprised when the negative news comes out a couple of weeks before earnings and investors start getting antsy. It happens like clockwork so you'd think investors would realize something nefarious is going on. Well, it just goes to show how scared investors really don't think straight if they believe their wealth is at risk. Buffett and crew obviously can relax and see through the temporary chaos.

    I'm really glad a conservative investor like Buffet is backing Apple.  His buys are based on company fundamentals.  Maybe more investors will follow his lead or at least stop being such man-pussies and see that Apple could be much more than just the iPhone company. Honestly, small retail investors need to get a grip on reality. The FANG stocks are not the entire stock market. There are other ways to make money without having to rely on double-digit revenue growth. That can't be depended on from any company to last forever. Just beware of any analyst telling investors to drop Apple to get X stock. That's just criminal advice.
    What is amazing to me, in particular, is the man's horizon. I was listening to this person who's 87, talking about a "10 to 20-year horizon" on his investments.

    There's a reason why he's so rich: patience (with lots of underlying wisdom, of course).
    StrangeDaysrandominternetpersonbaconstangjony0mike1
  • Reply 9 of 33
    airnerdairnerd Posts: 693member
    This looks like Buffet's game plan, he did the same thing with airlines recently.  He moved into a stock when it was slightly depressed on short-term woeful news (doom and gloom "analysts") and then makes a grand announcement that he is now in that high profile stock.  People latch on to "well if Warren is there, it must be good" and talks up how much he would like to own a company outright.  Then he will slowly and very quietly start to unwind the position after making a nice mint. Everyone knows he isn't going to buy 100% or even a majority of AAPL, so this feels like a pump and dump.  


    He did the exact same thing with airlines, specifically Southwest.  Took a high profile, beloved company that is well known and quietly bought into it.  Announced he would like to own more of it (google the speculative articles if you don't believe me) and then slowly started to unwind.  Of course LUV is now down because of fuel and recent events so the unwinding has slowed a bit.  


  • Reply 10 of 33
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    airnerd said:
    This looks like Buffet's game plan, he did the same thing with airlines recently.  He moved into a stock when it was slightly depressed on short-term woeful news (doom and gloom "analysts") and then makes a grand announcement that he is now in that high profile stock.  People latch on to "well if Warren is there, it must be good" and talks up how much he would like to own a company outright.  Then he will slowly and very quietly start to unwind the position after making a nice mint. Everyone knows he isn't going to buy 100% or even a majority of AAPL, so this feels like a pump and dump.  


    He did the exact same thing with airlines, specifically Southwest.  Took a high profile, beloved company that is well known and quietly bought into it.  Announced he would like to own more of it (google the speculative articles if you don't believe me) and then slowly started to unwind.  Of course LUV is now down because of fuel and recent events so the unwinding has slowed a bit.  


    He’s not going to sell off AAPL in less than a year. His team will hold it for a while. Having said that, Berkshire having waited so long before they got into AAPL (and this isn’t just about this particular story) indicates to me that they have really failed to do their homework. They totally missed out on the bounce back from the 2008 drop.
    edited May 2018 baconstangred oaklovemn
  • Reply 11 of 33
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    airnerd said:
    This looks like Buffet's game plan, he did the same thing with airlines recently.  He moved into a stock when it was slightly depressed on short-term woeful news (doom and gloom "analysts") and then makes a grand announcement that he is now in that high profile stock.  People latch on to "well if Warren is there, it must be good" and talks up how much he would like to own a company outright.  Then he will slowly and very quietly start to unwind the position after making a nice mint. Everyone knows he isn't going to buy 100% or even a majority of AAPL, so this feels like a pump and dump.  


    He did the exact same thing with airlines, specifically Southwest.  Took a high profile, beloved company that is well known and quietly bought into it.  Announced he would like to own more of it (google the speculative articles if you don't believe me) and then slowly started to unwind.  Of course LUV is now down because of fuel and recent events so the unwinding has slowed a bit.  
    He’s not going to sell off AAPL in less than a year. His team will hold it for a while.
    I seem to recall a Buffet saying something about holding stocks for at least a decade.

    edit: "If you aren't willing to own a stock for ten years, don't even think about owning it for ten minutes." — Warren Buffet, circa 1996
    edited May 2018 StrangeDays
  • Reply 12 of 33
    jdgazjdgaz Posts: 403member
    I will sell my Apple when Warren sells his. Other than that I look forward to some real nice dividends to supplement my eventual retirement.
  • Reply 13 of 33
    nunzynunzy Posts: 662member
    Apple has been a hugely profitable company, and Wall Street is reaping the rewards. WB understands that long term profit is what matters most.
  • Reply 14 of 33
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    jdgaz said:
    I will sell my Apple when Warren sells his. Other than that I look forward to some real nice dividends to supplement my eventual retirement.
    Personally, I don’t consider Buffet or Berkshire particularly prescient with any of their trades or advice. Buy and hold is nothing earth shattering. That he understands holding a stock long is not extraordinary.
  • Reply 15 of 33
    kenckenc Posts: 195member
    "We buy 100 percent of some businesses, and when they're publicly held we buy 5 percent" Not sure Warren is planning to buy more, given he just stated what sounds like an internal rule of his. Companies he likes, he'll buy outright if they're private, and up to 5% if they're public. Well, Apple is public and his stake is just under 5%. The other thing he likes to say is to buy when others are fearful. I have to admit, I bought 3400 shares @169.07, a minute before earnings, because of that thought.
    edited May 2018
  • Reply 16 of 33
    mike1mike1 Posts: 3,275member
    I'm really enjoying how Old Man Buffett is making all the millenial analysts look really stupid. Buffett may not know much about tech but he understands sound investing, at least from my point of view. It always puzzled me why analysts and investors were moaning and groaning about million unit iPhone shortfalls from quarter to quarter when you'd think they should be able to see further than that. Practically anything can hurt a quarter, even the weather, global unrest or flu epidemic. iPhone sales shortfalls do not indicate Apple's overall health by any means. Basing those sales on supply chain data makes numbers even less reliable. These analysts are really stupid and might as well wait for Apple's guidance.

    It's so amusing how Buffett's firm was loading up on Apple shares while the gutless were tossing their Apple stock to the wind. I could understand if investors weren't buying Apple, but they should never have been selling on unsubstantiated rumors. Quarter-to-quarter iPhone sales don't scare me because I'm in Apple for the dividends and I'll get them even i the share price drops. I'm always somewhat surprised when the negative news comes out a couple of weeks before earnings and investors start getting antsy. It happens like clockwork so you'd think investors would realize something nefarious is going on. Well, it just goes to show how scared investors really don't think straight if they believe their wealth is at risk. Buffett and crew obviously can relax and see through the temporary chaos.

    I'm really glad a conservative investor like Buffet is backing Apple.  His buys are based on company fundamentals.  Maybe more investors will follow his lead or at least stop being such man-pussies and see that Apple could be much more than just the iPhone company. Honestly, small retail investors need to get a grip on reality. The FANG stocks are not the entire stock market. There are other ways to make money without having to rely on double-digit revenue growth. That can't be depended on from any company to last forever. Just beware of any analyst telling investors to drop Apple to get X stock. That's just criminal advice.
    That's because he's an investor, not a day trader.
  • Reply 17 of 33
    knowitallknowitall Posts: 1,648member
    Smells like a ‘Carl Icahn‘, strange that everyone seems to have forgotten this charlatan.
    His supposed argument to buy is really insane, as if Apple magically maintains a strong hold on its buyers. This is ‘reality distortion field’ all over again, hélas without Steven Jobs.
    If B is selling on low, Air Fance and KLM are cheap right now, if he wants to buy (also) on costumer loyalty, Tesla comes to mind.
    A pity I don’t get the multi millions for such good advice.   
  • Reply 18 of 33
    carnegiecarnegie Posts: 1,077member
    kenc said:
    "We buy 100 percent of some businesses, and when they're publicly held we buy 5 percent" Not sure Warren is planning to buy more, given he just stated what sounds like an internal rule of his. Companies he likes, he'll buy outright if they're private, and up to 5% if they're public. Well, Apple is public and his stake is just under 5%. The other thing he likes to say is to buy when others are fearful. I have to admit, I bought 3400 shares @169.07, a minute before earnings, because of that thought.
    I think the 5 percent he referred to was just an example and that it wasn't meant as a maximum that Berkshire limits itself to. Berkshire holds more than 5% of a number of publicly-held companies - e.g., Coca-Cola, Phillips 66, Bank of America, Wells Fargo. It owns more than 17% of American Express.

    When it comes to Apple, I'd be surprised if Berkshire isn't above 5% ownership now. I suspect it bought more shares after the first (calendar) quarter and before Apple announced results, especially considering the dip the stock saw (into the low $160s) before earnings were announced.
    edited May 2018
  • Reply 19 of 33
    linkmanlinkman Posts: 1,035member

     "but I'd love to own 100% of it"

    I know it is probably more complicated than this, but wouldn't his company need to obtain about $1T USD to do this?
  • Reply 20 of 33
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    linkman said:

     "but I'd love to own 100% of it"

    I know it is probably more complicated than this, but wouldn't his company need to obtain about $1T USD to do this?
    Buffet was just playing to the press. Such statements can only strengthen his own holdings.
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