Berkshire Hathaway Q1 Profit, Operating Earnings Rise

(RTTNews) - Billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. (BRK-A, BRK-B) reported a profit for the first quarter that increased 10 percent from last year, despite a drop in investment gains, reflecting higher operating earnings across all its businesses and improved revenues.

The Omaha, Nebraska-based company reported net earnings attributable to shareholders of $5.16 billion or $3,143 per Class A share for the first quarter, higher than $4.71 billion or $2,862 per Class A share in the prior-year quarter.

Investment and derivative gains declined to $920 million from $1.17 billion in the prior year.

Excluding items, operating earnings for the quarter was $4.24 billion or $2,583 per Class A share, compared to $3.53 billion or $2,149 per Class A share in the year-ago quarter.

Insurance-underwriting operating earnings improved to $480 million from $461 million, and insurance-investment income operating earnings grew to $875 million from $720 million from last year.

Railroad, utilities and energy operating earnings increased to $1.47 billion from $1.18 billion, and operating earnings from other businesses totaled $1.41 billion, up from $1.17 billion a year ago.

Revenues for the quarter increased to $48.64 billion from $45.45 billion in the same quarter last year.

At March 31, 2015, the company's book value, Buffett's preferred measure of growth, edged up 0.5 percent since year-end 2014 to $146,963 per Class A equivalent share. Insurance float (net liabilities assumed under insurance contracts) at March 31, 2015 was about $83.5 billion.

Buffett has run Berkshire for nearly five decades and owns more than $40 billion of stock in the company, which has interests across insurance, restaurants, furniture, clothing, candy companies, natural gas and railroad. Berkshire also holds significant stakes in top notch companies.

Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company with a number of operating subsidiaries like auto insurer Geico, reinsurer General Re, railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., energy utilities and a host of other manufacturing and retail companies.

BRK-A closed Friday's trading at $215,800, up $2,400 or 1.12% on a volume of 335 shares, and BRK-B closed at $143.36, up $2.15 or 1.52% on a volume of 2.80 million shares.