Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) Q3 2026 Earnings

Berkshire Hathaway announced on Saturday that it accelerated share buybacks during the third quarter as operating profit and overall profit took a hit.

Greg Abel’s conglomerate bought back $9.6 billion worth of Berkshire stock. This is more than double the $4.5 billion in share buybacks in the second quarter, and will bring the company’s total share buybacks in 2026 to about $14.4 billion.

The large increase came as profits from Berkshire’s insurance business receded and operating income from its wholly-owned businesses declined year-over-year.

Berkshire’s operating income was $12.705 billion, down 5.8% from $13.485 billion in the same period last year. Insurance underwriting decreased 43% year over year to $1.352 billion, and insurance investment income decreased 14% to $2.734 billion. Berkshire’s rail, energy and manufacturing businesses all posted year-over-year profit increases.

Berkshire’s overall profit, which includes its vast stock market portfolio, also fell 28% to $22.112 billion in the third quarter from $30.796 billion in the same period a year earlier. The company’s investment income fell nearly 50% to $9.407 billion.

Despite the earnings pullback, Berkshire stock has outperformed recently amid a large rotation into technology stocks. Class A stocks have risen more than 12% over the past month, while the S&P 500 index has fallen 5.5%. Year-to-date, Berkshire is up 13%, while the broader market index is up just 7.8%.

Berkshire’s five largest stock holdings remained unchanged in the third quarter. alphabet, american express, apple, bank of america and coca cola.

Berkshire’s cash holdings also increased 3% to $377.435 billion in the third quarter from $365.514 billion in the second quarter. But excluding rail and utility and national tax obligations, the conglomerate’s cash holdings totaled $352.3 billion, down 1.9% from the previous quarter.

— CNBC’s Alex Crippen contributed reporting.