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Warren Buffett will attend his first shareholder meeting without his longtime business partner and friend Charlie Munger, who passed away in November.
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CNN
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Welcome to “Woodstock for Capitalists.”
Tens of thousands of Berkshire Hathaway shareholders and Warren Buffett fans will flock to Nebraska this weekend to consume Berkshire (BRKB)-owned See's Candies and Dairy Queen Dilly Bars and participate in a newspaper-throwing contest and, perhaps most importantly, gathered to see the Oracle of Omaha. Please speak directly.
However, this year's event will take on a more solemn atmosphere. Buffett will attend for the first time without his longtime business partner and friend Charlie Munger, who passed away in November.
Greg Abel is expected to be Buffett's successor and runs Berkshire's non-insurance businesses. Ajit Jain, who runs the company's insurance business, is also scheduled to join Buffett on stage. But the warm exchanges and Mr. Munger's wise (and often sarcastic) remarks will be missed.
Mr. Buffett, 93, opened Berkshire's 2023 annual report with a dedication to Mr. Munger, who died at age 99, just 33 days before his milestone birthday.
Buffett said Munger was the “architect” behind the conglomerate they built together. “In the real world, great buildings are associated with their architects, but the people who poured the concrete and installed the windows are quickly forgotten,” he writes. “Berkshire has become a great company. I've been on the construction staff for a long time, but Charlie should forever be recognized as the architect.”
The two first met in 1959, and three years later Munger began working in money management, the letter said. Mr. Munger joined Berkshire Hathaway in 1978 as vice chairman, sitting beside Mr. Buffett and quick to dish out quips and sage advice.
“Charlie never tried to take credit for his role as creator, but instead he let me bow down and take the credit. In a way, it was him and me. My relationship with him was that of a big brother and a loving father. Even when I knew I was right, he gave me control and even when I messed up, he never, ever reminded me of my mistakes. There wasn't,” Buffett wrote.
Mr. Munger's death has raised questions about his successor at Berkshire.
Mr. Abel, 61, has been named his heir apparent in 2021, and Mr. Buffett believes Berkshire (BRK.A), which closed Friday at $603,000 per share, has a strong succession plan. We have tried to assure investors that everything is in place.
“I don't have a second choice. I mean, it's that hard to find. But I've also seen what Greg is doing, and I feel 100 percent at ease,” Buffett said at last year's shareholder meeting. . “Greg is inheriting a good business, and I think he's going to make it even better.”
Berkshire will also report first-quarter 2024 results on Saturday morning. Buffett famously releases his quarterly report on the weekend so investors can fully understand the content before trading resumes on Monday.
Berkshire's operating profit is expected to rise 21% to $6,702 per Class A share, according to FactSet estimates. Berkshire's Class A shares have risen nearly 10% this year, outpacing the S&P 500's 7.5%.
Berkshire Hathaway reported fourth-quarter operating income totaled $8.5 billion, up 28% from $6.6 billion a year ago. Operating profit for the same year increased to $37.3 billion after setting a record of $30.8 billion in 2022.
The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate ended the year with a net profit of $96.2 billion, a sharp turnaround from its 2022 net loss of $22.8 billion.
This story is in development and will be updated.
