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| Subject: Berkshire Profit Jumps to $3.1 Billion on Derivatives Sun Feb 28, 2010 4:40 am | |
| Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said fourth-quarter profit jumped on the recovery of derivative bets tied to the world’s stock markets.
Net income rose to $3.06 billion, or $1,969 a share, from $117 million, or $76, in the same period a year earlier, the Omaha, Nebraska-based company said today in its annual report.
The profit increase, Berkshire’s third straight, helps rebuild a cash pile that diminished since 2007 as Buffett invested in financial firms bruised by the recession. Companies including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. that turned to Buffett for funding are paying Berkshire interest of 10 percent or more. The shopping spree culminated with the November agreement to buy railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe for $27 billion.
“We’ve put a lot of money to work during the chaos of the last two years,” Buffett said in his letter to shareholders today. “It’s been an ideal period for investors: A climate of fear is their best friend.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a6FeucgVXUXk |
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