Berkshire Hathaway

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Joined by longtime Vice Chairman **Charles T. Munger** (who served from 1978 until his death in November 2023), Buffett wound down the struggling New England textile mills (closing the last textile operations in 1985) and redeployed capital into insurance—starting with **National Indemnity Company** in 1967—using insurance policy "float" to acquire wholly owned operating businesses and concentrated public equity stakes. Originally incorporated in Massachusetts and re-incorporated in Delaware in 1973, Berkshire adopted its current SEC reporting entity (CIK 0001067983; Delaware incorporation June 16, 1998 as OBH Inc., renamed **Berkshire Hathaway Inc.** on December 21, 1998) to consummate the tax-free merger with General Re Corporation. Berkshire paid a single $0.10 dividend in 1967 and has retained 100% of earnings for reinvestment and opportunistic share repurchases ever since, introducing lower-denomination Class B shares (`BRK.B`) in May 1996 (split 50-for-1 in January 2010 to facilitate the BNSF acquisition) while never splitting Class A shares (`BRK.A`). **Major Acquisitions (Signing vs. Close Distinguished):** * **Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation (BNSF):** Announced November 3, 2009 at $100.00 per share in cash and stock to acquire the remaining ~77.4% of BNSF not already owned by Berkshire—valuing 100% of BNSF at **~$44 billion** (including ~$10B of assumed BNSF debt) and the newly acquired 77.4% equity stake at **~$26.3 billion** at signing; closed February 12, 2010 at **~$26.5 billion** GAAP consideration for the remaining stake (~$34B cumulative equity cost). * **Precision Castparts Corp.:** Announced August 10, 2015 at $235.00 per share in cash, carrying a signing enterprise value of **~$37.2 billion** (including assumed net debt) and equity value of **~$32.3 billion**; closed January 29, 2016 at **~$32.1 billion** cash equity purchase price (net of cash acquired ~32.7B gross; Berkshire subsequently recorded a ~$9.8B goodwill/intangible impairment on PCC in 2020). * **General Re Corporation:** Announced June 19, 1998 as an all-stock merger valued at **$22.0 billion** at signing; closed December 21, 1998 at **~$16.5 billion** final accounting consideration following share-price movements between signing and close. * **Pilot Travel Centers LLC (3-Stage Buyout):** Berkshire acquired an initial 38.6% stake in October 2017 (~$2.8B), purchased an additional 41.4% stake in January 2023 for **$8.2 billion** (bringing ownership to 80% and triggering full consolidation), and following Delaware Chancery Court accounting litigation settlement with the Haslam family in January 2024, closed the final 20% buyout on January 16, 2024 for **$2.6 billion** (~$13.6 billion cumulative cash outlay for 100%). * **Alleghany Corporation & Lubrizol Corporation:** **Lubrizol** was signed in March 2011 at $135/share (**~$9.7 billion** enterprise value / **~$9.0 billion** cash equity) and closed September 16, 2011 at **~$9.0 billion** cash; **Alleghany** was signed March 21, 2022 at $848.02/share in cash (**$11.6 billion** equity value) and closed October 19, 2022 at **$11.5 billion** cash consideration. Form 10-K Risk Factors and shareholder letters identify four principal structural risks: 1. **Key-Person & Leadership Transition Risk:** Berkshire's six-decade track record, acquisition deal flow, and decentralized trust culture were uniquely shaped by Warren Buffett (born August 1930) alongside the late Charlie Munger; transitioning capital allocation and cultural stewardship to Vice Chairman **Greg Abel** (non-insurance operations / designated CEO successor) and **Ajit Jain** (insurance operations) represents the central governance watchpoint in Form 10-K disclosures

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Subsidiaries, Brands & Ownership

Wholly Owned Subsidiary (100%)

Duracell

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Wholly Owned Subsidiary (100%)

See's Candies

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Subsidiary (~92%)

Berkshire Hathaway Energy

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Wholly Owned Subsidiary (100%)

BNSF Railway

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Wholly Owned Subsidiary (100%)

Precision Castparts Corp.

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Wholly Owned Subsidiary (100%)

GEICO

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Controlling Shareholder & Chairman

Warren Buffett

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