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Author Fan Zhijing
Berkshire Hathaway disclosed Document 13F of its stock portfolio for the fourth quarter of 2020 on February 16 local time. Buffett, the “god of stocks,” shoots frequently, increasing his accumulated holdings by nearly $ 34 billion. In contrast, Berkshire increased its holdings by $ 9.6 billion in the third quarter of last year.
The data shows that between October and December of last year, Buffett and his two portfolio managers, Ted Weschler and Todd Combs, opened positions or increased their stakes in 9 companies, mainly in medicine, telecommunications and oil. Shares, reduced the holdings of the first heavy stocksAppleCompanies and some banking actions.
Betting on the economic recovery of the United States
At the shareholders’ meeting in May last year, Buffett said that he still believes that nothing can stop the United States in the bud, as it did during World War II, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the September 11 incident. and the global financial crisis. “Never fall short in America,” he said.
Now “Stock God” seems to be keeping his promise, he’s at Verizon andChevronThe large number of established positions shows confidence in the long-term value and economic recovery of traditional industries such as telecommunications and fossil fuels.
According to the 13F docket, Berkshire bought 146.7 million shares of Verizon, the second largest telecommunications operator in the United States, with a market value of approximately US $ 8.6 billion, T-Mobile 117%, at 5, 2 million shares.
Verizon’s revenue in the fourth quarter of last year was US $ 34.69 billion, unchanged from the previous quarter, and net income fell 9.6%, primarily due to increased operating costs and decreased operating costs. New customers. The company’s earnings growth rate has been lower than the industry growth rate for the past three years, but the operating profit margin is still at the highest level in the industry. In the latest financial report, Verizon is actively optimistic about the performance of 5G. commercial market this year.
Since last novemberPfizerFollowing the release of clinical data on the vaccine, international oil prices began a new round of strong rebound. OPEC production cuts and investors’ expectations of an economic recovery have reversed the fragile supply-demand relationship. This week, international oil prices continued to hit a new record for nearly a year. The Brent world oil price benchmark contract has approached the $ 65 mark. Rising oil prices have made the energy sector a hot spot in the market and boosted the performance of energy stocks and exchange-traded funds.
In the fourth quarter of 2020, Berkshire opened a position to purchase almost 48.5 million shares of Chevron, with a total market value of almost 4.2 billion US dollars. As the second largest energy company in the United States, Chevron plummeted 30% last year, its worst performance since 2016. Affected by oil prices, the company’s revenue in the fourth quarter of last year was US $ 36.9 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 8%, and recorded a loss of US $ 10.4 billion in impairment expenses, primarily related to the Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Project, shale gas assets of the Appalachia and Canada’s Kitmat LNG project. Since the beginning of this year, with the rebound in international oil prices, Chevron’s share price has risen 10.3%. Based on Berkshire’s opening price of $ 81.13, the cumulative floating profit has reached nearly $ 500 million.
This time, the “god of stocks” also continued to increase the position of the retailer Kruger, buying 8.56 million shares in total and maintaining a total position of almost US $ 1 billion. Consumption is the biggest driving force in the US economy. Late last year, the US government stimulus bill was phased out for $ 600, which is expected to support daily spending. of households. According to data from Mastercard SpendingPulse, retail sales in all 50 US states increased in January. Institutions generally predict that retail sales data released on Friday will rise 0.8% month-on-month, the first rebound since September last year. .
Adjusted positions in financial and pharmaceutical stocks and reduced holdings of Apple
As the largest stock in its portfolio, Berkshire reduced Apple’s holdings by 6% in the fourth quarter of last year, from 944.3 million shares to 887.1 million shares. The cumulative market value is $ 120 billion, which is equivalent to 5.4% of Apple’s outstanding shares. shares, a decrease of 0.2 from the previous quarter Percentage points.
Although affected by factors such as transaction fees, the substantial increase in investment bank revenues and the unexpected release of provisions for non-performing loans, the performance of bank stocks in the last quarter was generally better than expected. expected, and the “stock gods” still chose to continue to lighten their positions. Documents show, Berkshire liquidationJPMorgan、 M & T Bank 、PNC FinanceServices group, underweightFuGuo benchWith 59% to 52.4 million shares,Bank of AmericaThe position remains unchanged, Berkshire currently owns nearly 12% of Bank of America’s outstanding shares.
It is worth mentioning that Berkshire has continually reduced its stakes in JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, in the last three quarters. It sold more than 30 million shares in the second quarter of last year and more than 20 million shares in the third quarter of 967,000 shares. As the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates to the lowest level in history, a number of loan interest rates have also been suppressed, negatively affecting the bank’s interest income. JPMorgan Chase’s margin fell to 1.80% last quarter from 2.38% a year ago. Berkshire bought JPMorgan Chase for the first time since the third quarter of 2018. Based on Berkshire’s average holding price of $ 112.01 in the fourth quarter, the holding loss can be close to 12%.
Berkshire’s position in pharmaceutical stocks has also been adjusted.MerckAlmost 6.3 million shares, increased positionsAbbVie20% stake, Bristol-MyersSquibbShare 11%.
Today, the outside world continues to pay close attention to how Buffett will use Berkshire’s cash reserves of more than $ 150 billion. The company repurchased $ 15.7 billion in stock in the first three quarters of last year, setting a record.
