Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. reported a sharp rebound in operating earnings in the third quarter of 2025, with its legendary cash pile climbing to an all-time high of $381.7 billion, even as the conglomerate once again held off on share buybacks.
Operating earnings rose 34% year-on-year to $13.5 billion, driven primarily by a surge in insurance underwriting income amid an unusually quiet disaster season. According to company filings released Saturday, Berkshire’s insurance and reinsurance units both returned to profitability, marking a stark reversal from the losses recorded a year earlier.
The group’s insurance underwriting profit skyrocketed over 200% to $2.37 billion, reflecting strong results across primary and reinsurance segments. However, auto insurer Geico saw its pretax underwriting profit slip 13% as higher claims offset the benefit of new policy growth.
Despite the mounting cash reserves, Buffett’s company sold $6.1 billion worth of stocks during the quarter and saw its net investment income dip 13% to $3.2 billion, hit by lower short-term interest rates.
For the fifth consecutive quarter, Berkshire refrained from repurchasing its own shares, even after they fell about 12% following Buffett’s announcement in May that he would step down as CEO at the end of the year. The 95-year-old investor will remain chairman of the board, while Greg Abel, vice chairman for non-insurance operations, will assume the CEO role starting 2026, including authorship of the company’s annual shareholder letters.
Berkshire’s sprawling portfolio — spanning insurance, railroads, energy, and manufacturing — is often viewed as a barometer of US economic strength. In 2025, Berkshire’s Class A and B shares have risen 5%, lagging behind the S&P 500’s 16.3% gain, as investors eye how the post-Buffett era may reshape the conglomerate’s famously cautious capital strategy.
