Buffett is dumping BofA stock again and soon he’ll be able to trade in secret

(Bloomberg) – Berkshire Hathaway Inc. by Warren Buffett won’t be quick to sell off Bank of America Corp. shares for much longer. need to announce. That is, if he continues to reduce the investment.

Most read from Bloomberg

A new round of divestments announced late Friday reduced the conglomerate’s stake in the bank to 11.4%. As long as Berkshire holds more than 10%, U.S. rules require the company to make transactions public within a few days. But if the company owns less, it could wait weeks to notify the public, with snapshots typically taken after each quarter.

That would put an end to the drama that has weighed on BofA’s share price since mid-July, when Buffett – a long-time supporter of CEO Brian Moynihan – started a sell-off without explanation. Berkshire has since raised a total of $6.2 billion.

In the divestitures announced Friday, Berkshire sold about 21 million shares for $848 million from Aug. 28 to 30.

Buffett, 94, began building the investment in Bank of America in 2011 with a $5 billion deal for preferred stock and warrants. His Berkshire Hathaway ultimately became — and remains — the bank’s largest shareholder, with a stake of about $36 billion, based on Friday’s closing price.

–With assistance from Peter Eichenbaum.

Most read from Bloomberg Businessweek

©2024 BloombergLP