By Erik HolmWith the revelation that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway was again given an SEC waiver to omit information from its quarterly 13-F, it’s worth looking at Berkshire’s latest 10-Q, where the company revealed it spent $3.42 billion on equities in first quarter dapd A rough eyeballing indicates Berkshire was unlikely�to have spent much more than $2 billion on the announced additions to the portfolio. That means Berkshire — and almost certainly Buffett himself — could be more than�$1 billion down the road toward building a major position. The last time Berkshire got confidential treatment was when Buffett was compiling a massive stake in IBM, a position now worth roughly $13 billion. Continue reading →
By Serena Ng and Justin Baer Berkshire, which is backing Coty�s bid for rival Avon Products, would provide $2.5 billion to finance the deal if it takes place, according to people familiar with the matter. Buffett was brought into the financing group some time ago by Byron Trott, a longtime banker to Berkshire who now runs BDT Capital Partners, the people said. Buffett holds Coty chairman Bart Becht in high regard, the people said. Privately-held Coty noted Berkshire�s involvement in a letter to Avon�s board Wednesday, but didn�t say how much the Omaha, Neb., conglomerate would contribute. Coty also said it had raised its bid to $10.69 billion, or $24.75 per Avon share, 6.5% higher than its earlier bid. Coty disclosed Berkshire�s involvement to lend ... Continue reading →
Unbowed by a brutal knee injury, Yankee closer Mariano Rivera declared Friday that he will not retire, and will undergo knee surgery determined to pitch again. "I'm coming back. Write it down in big letters. I can't go out this way," Rivera said. Rivera, hobbling around on crutches, seemed upbeat and positive, a stark contrast to the dejected man on display Thursday night, after he learned that the ACL and meniscus in his right knee were torn. Thursday night, he had tears in his eyes as he said he wasn't sure whether he would pitch again. Rivera had been contemplating retirement all season, but he said this injury had made his decision clear: he would do whatever it takes to pitch again. He said he ... Continue reading →
By Colin Barr and Serena Ng Associated Press It�s Woodstock for Capitalism time again. Berkshire Hathaway�s chairman and chief executive, Warren Buffett, and the company�s vice chairman, Charlie Munger, will address shareholders in Omaha, Neb., for five hours or so starting Saturday morning. The question-and-answer session is famously wide-ranging, though this year is likely to bring more focus on the company�s operations, with a panel of three Wall Street analysts asking their own questions, in addition to an existing panel of three journalists who screen questions from investors and others. Here, based on a decidedly unscientific canvassing of Berkshire investors and published material, are some of the questions Buffett may face: 1. Won�t you tell us more about your successor? Buffett made headlines in February ... Continue reading →
AP Photo/YES Network Mariano Rivera grimaces after twisting his right knee batting practice before a game with the Kansas City Royals on Thursday. Regal even with a limp, Mariano Rivera trudged out from the trainer's room deep in the bowels of Kansas City's Kaufmann Stadium on Thursday to acknowledge the sad reality: His career as baseball's greatest reliever might be over. "At this point, I don't know," Rivera said, his eyes reddening and welling up. "At this point, I don't know. We have to face this first." Rivera has blown games, lost a World Series in the final moments, seen great success and failure and everything in between. But he has never been seen in public like this—broken, open, head bowed. His right knee, the ... Continue reading →
BY SERENA NG Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is preparing to roll out a bond-trading platform on which it will charge lower fees than on typical bond trades, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that could help retain customers tempted by rival trading venues being set up by BlackRock Inc. and others. The New York securities firm has been developing an electronic platform called GSessions over the past year, according to a person familiar with its plans. The idea is to bring together clients who want to buy or sell specific corporate bonds at certain times, a process known as "crossing ...BY SERENA NG Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is preparing to roll out a bond-trading platform on which it will charge lower fees ... Continue reading →
By Ron Winslow Reuters Like most men diagnosed with stage I — or early stage — prostate cancer, Warren Buffett is almost certain to die of something else. Especially given that the diagnosis comes at age 81. Stage I disease is contained within the prostate gland, typically slow-growing, and very curable, experts say. Doctors not involved with his treatment tell the Health Blog there is every reason to believe Buffett�s assertion that his condition will affect little but his summer travel schedule. “I wouldn’t think it would influence anything, frankly,” says Christopher Logothetis, head of urologic oncology at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center,� Houston.� While the revered investor’s decision to undergo two months of daily radiation treatments could lead to “some reduced energy,” Logothetis adds, “for ... Continue reading →
The Investment Company Institute and the Chamber of Commerce filed a joint lawsuit Tuesday against the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, challenging a new requirement that some mutual funds register with the CFTC as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission. The 47-page complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges the CFTC hasn't demonstrated a need to impose further regulation on mutual funds and exchange-traded funds. The amendment to CFTC Rule 4.5, adopted in February, stipulates that some registered investment advisers of mutual-fund companies and ETFs would qualify as "commodity pool operators," and therefore would be required to register with the CFTC in addition to the SEC. "Investment companies and their advisers already are among the most highly regulated entities in ... Continue reading →
It turns out not everyone hates pink slime. After being pummeled in the media for weeks, the beef additive made from leftover trimmings is getting support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the governors of five states, who argue it has been unfairly labeled and is actually a safe, low-cost way to make ground beef leaner. "This is an unwarranted, unmerited food scare," said Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, who, along with Texas Gov. Rick Perry and representatives of several other states, has vowed to consume the product themselves after touring a plant where it is made on Thursday. "If there was some basis in fact to this, other than somebody's clever naming of it, then you'd say 'no you shouldn't stick your neck out ... Continue reading →
