Billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Strengthens Bullish Stance on Apple, Airlines; Other Top Q4 Moves

One industry that Buffett and his team like is airlines. Out of four airline companies in Berkshire’s equity portfolio, the fund initiated a stake in one company and boosted its holdings in the other three, by as much as 850% in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)‘s case. At the end of December, Berkshire held 60.03 million shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) worth $2.95 billion and it added 42.20 million shares of Southwest Airlines Co (NYSE:LUV), reporting a new position worth $2.15 billion in its latest 13F filing. It’s worth mentioning that in all four airline stocks (the other two being American Airlines Group Inc (NASDAQ:AAL) and United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL)) Berkshire initiated stakes in the third and fourth quarters of last year. Berkshire’s ‘bullishness’ towards the airline industry is particularly interesting since back at the company’s 2013 annual meeting, Buffett said that the airline industry is a “death trap for investors.” However, as the drop in oil prices dragged down jet fuel prices and US airlines are investing in improvements to their fleet’s capacity, efficiency, and service, it’s not surprising that the billionaire investor changed his mind about the industry.

Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI) is another addition to Berkshire’s portfolio, with the fund having acquired 166.64 million shares worth $741.55 million between October and December. The provider of satellite radio saw its shares advance by over 6% during the fourth quarter and have added another 9.90% since the beginning of 2017, including an over-3% gain registered today, most likely on the back of Berkshire’s 13F. With car sales in the U.S. on the rise over the last years, Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI) has been increasing its subscriber numbers. It has also managed to post better-than-expected revenue for most of the last ten quarters, although its bottom-line has been mostly in-line with estimates. David Cohen and Harold Levy’s Iridian Asset Management is another shareholder of Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:SIRI), with a stake containing 55.33 million shares as of the end of 2016.

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Let’s move on to the stocks that Berkshire disposed of during the fourth quarter. One of those companies is Deere & Company (NYSE:DE), in which Berkshire had previously held 21.09 million shares. The stock of the agricultural equipment manufacturer gained nearly 25% between the end of the third quarter of 2012 (when Berkshire acquired the stake) and the end of 2016. Over the last couple of years, Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) has been suffering from sales declines as weaker crop prices put more pressure on farmers. John Lykouretzos’ Hoplite Capital Management also closed its stake in Deere & Company (NYSE:DE), while Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global initiated a position containing 9.31 million shares during the fourth quarter.

Another company in which Berkshire closed its position is Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI). In addition, the fund cut its stake in Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT) by nearly 90% to 1.39 million shares, after having held shares of the company for more than a decade.

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