Editor’s Note: Related tickers: Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A), The Allstate Corporation (NYSE:ALL), American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG), The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV), NV Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NVE), H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE:HNZ), Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI)
BYD Co. (1211), the Warren Buffett-backed Chinese auto-and-battery maker, is seeking to increase overseas sales of its electric bus as billionaire founder Wang Chuanfu predicts a “second takeoff” for the company this year. Shenzhen-based BYD has signed contracts this year to supply a total of 35 K9 electric buses to Long Beach and Los Angeles for use in public transportation. It also won an order in the Netherlands, and began trials in Poland and Canada. …MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co., a unit of Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A), took a 9.9 percent stake in BYD in 2009, paying HK$8 apiece for 225 million new shares.
Why Berkshire Earnings Aren’t Pushing the Dow Higher (Fool)
Over the decades in which he has run Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A), Warren Buffett has been one of the most influential investors in the world. With stock markets hanging on his every word, Buffett has single-handedly helped give the market confidence during times of trouble while calling out exuberance and overvaluation during boom times. Therefore it’s somewhat surprising today that after a favorable earnings report from Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) over the weekend, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) is down 38 points as of 11 a.m. EDT, falling back slightly from Friday’s record close.
This guy’s millions could save your company(CNBC)
GP Should Take Lesson From Buffett on Pay, Investor Says (BusinessWeek)
GP Investments Ltd. (GPIV11), the private-equity firm founded by Brazil’s richest man, should take a lesson from U.S. billionaire Warren Buffett and cut executive pay, shareholder NCH Capital Inc. told the company. GP, whose shares plummeted 78 percent in the past five years, almost doubled pay for its management team to 24.5 million reais ($10.7 million) last year, when profit totaled 19.8 million reais, according to the Hamilton, Bermuda-based company’s regulatory filings. The firm posted a loss of 206.8 million reais in 2011. …Gulbrandsen said the company should follow the example of Buffett, who as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) takes a salary of $100,000 a year even as the firm’s shares climb to record highs.
Berkshire Sidesteps Bond Rout, Builds Shareholder Equity (SFGate)
Warren Buffett’s preference for buying stocks and whole companies rather than bonds is helping Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) weather a spike in interest rates better than other insurers. Book value rose 2 percent to about $122,900 per Class A share in the three months ended June 30, Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) said Aug. 2. Insurance competitors including The Allstate Corporation (NYSE:ALL), American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) and The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) posted second-quarter declines in the measure of assets minus liabilities. Interest rates surged in the period after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke signaled the central bank could begin to taper its $85 billion-a-month bond purchases this year.
Peter Buffett Is Right to Call for Philanthropic Change (Philanthropy)
When Peter Buffett took to the pages of The New York Times to lament what he calls a “crisis of imagination” in philanthropy—a failure to envisage a way for our society to function that puts an end to what he calls a “perpetual poverty machine,” he ignited a quite a debate. Mr. Buffett, chairman of the NoVo Foundation and son of Warren Buffett, critiqued our capitalist system, while being careful to emphasize that he is not calling for an end to it. Sitting in meetings with people who are “searching for answers with their right hand to problems that others in the room have created with their left” has left him frustrated, he writes.
Why is Harry Reid Supporting Warren Buffett’s Energy Bid? (WallStCheatSheet)
While it would seem unlikely anyone needs to help Warren Buffett, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has been offering the Oracle of Omaha a hand in the purchase of NV Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NVE). MidAmerican Energy Holding Co., a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) company, would become the largest utility company in the U.S. if the sale went through, according to Energy and Environment Daily. Reid’s motivations appear to be two-fold. Reid has been in the news several times this year for his support of the MidAmerican buy. On July 23, the Senate Majority Leader sent a letter to the Federal Energy Regulation Commission maintaining his support. Reid framed the deal as both good for the environment (greener energy sources) and good for his state’s overall economy.
Warren Buffett’s Bond Stance Propels Berkshire To Double Digit Earnings Growth (Benzinga)
Warren Buffett has never been much for the media spotlight which is likely one of the reasons why his company, Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) reported earnings on Friday evening when traders were packing Wall Street bars talking about Anthony Weiner and the week’s winning trades. But this was a quarter to talk about for Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A). The company reported A-share profit of $4.54 billion, or $2,763 per share. That’s a year over year increase of $881 per share or a 46 percent gain. Operating profit rose to $2,384 per share—up from $2,252 for a six percent gain. Analysts had expected $2,170.
Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway sees profits soar 46% (InvestmentWeek)
The group reported net income rose to $4.54bn, up from $3.11bn in the second quarter of 2012. One of the biggest factors behind the profits rise was due the firm making a $622m profit from investments and derivatives, compared to a $612m paper loss last year. …The company reported its cash pile shrunk during the quarter from $49.1bn to $35.7bn following the purchase of H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE:HNZ) for $23bn earlier this year. Buffett teamed up with investment firm 3G Capital for the merger, agreeing to pay $72.50 a share in cash for the food giant.
