“Berkshire Hathaway Stock Hits Record High, Surpassing Previous Closing High”

Berkshire Hathaway’s class A stock has reached record territory, trading above a closing high from earlier this year. The stock is up 1.4% to $638,150 on Friday, surpassing the previous record close of $634,440 set on March 28. Year-to-date, the shares have gained 17.2%, slightly trailing the 18.5% total return of the S&P 500 index.

The company, now valued at about $914 billion, is led by CEO Warren Buffett, whose 15% stake in the company, consisting of approximately 207,964 class A shares, is worth around $133 billion.

Berkshire Hathaway’s recent stock performance has been boosted by a rally in value-oriented stocks, which have outperformed growth stocks this year. The company is the largest component of the Russell 1000 Value Index, which includes the top 1,000 value stocks in the market by market capitalization.

Although the class A stock is still below its intraday high of around $647,000 set on Feb. 26, following its first-quarter earnings report, it has shown resilience. The class B stock also hit an intraday record on the same day. However, a trading glitch on June 3 briefly sent Berkshire Hathaway shares down nearly 100%, resulting in an erroneous intraday high of about $742,000 for the A shares.

Currently trading at 1.5 times the estimated June 30 book value of $425,000 per class A share, Berkshire Hathaway’s valuation is slightly above its five-year average of around 1.4 times. Some shareholders have expressed disappointment as the stock lagged behind gains in its $400 billion equity portfolio, largely driven by Apple stock, which accounts for over 40% of the portfolio and has risen 35% since the end of the first quarter.

With a price/earnings ratio of about 22 times projected 2024 earnings, Berkshire Hathaway is trading at a slight discount to the S&P 500 at 23 times. Some analysts and investors prefer to use a non-GAAP measure called look-through profits, which considers the earnings of the companies in Berkshire Hathaway’s equity portfolio. This metric shows a slightly lower price/earnings ratio than 22.

In conclusion, Berkshire Hathaway’s record-breaking performance reflects its resilience and value in the market. The company’s strategic investments and leadership under Warren Buffett continue to drive growth and shareholder value.