Buffett's $7B BofA backout, but why?

Buffett's $7B BofA backout, but why?
Berkshire Hathaway has liquidated another $760M of the bank's stock.
SEP 06, 2024

Warren Buffett extended his sales of Bank of America Corp. shares into September, reaping a total of $6.97 billion since the spree of disposals started in mid-July.

In the latest round of transactions, disclosed in a regulatory filing Thursday, his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. liquidated $760 million of the stock since Tuesday. Still, Berkshire remains Bank of America’s top shareholder, with a roughly 11% stake valued at $34.7 billion, based on the latest closing price.

If Berkshire keeps selling, its stake in the second-largest US bank could soon slide below the 10% regulatory threshold that requires his conglomerate to disclose transactions within a few days. Once he controls less than that, Buffett may wait weeks to reveal transactions — typically offering snapshots after every quarter.

The 94-year-old began building Berkshire’s investment in Bank of America with a $5 billion deal in 2011 for preferred stock and warrants. After years spent adding to the stake and praising the bank’s leadership, Buffett has offered no public explanation for his decision pull back.

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