Berkshire Hathaway repurchased $9.6 billion worth of its own shares in the third quarter, but Geico disappointed and its overall profit fell more than 28 percent as the value of its investments changed.
Berkshire reported a $22.1 billion profit on Saturday morning, down from $30.8 billion in last year's third quarter. Operating earnings, the measure the company has long said investors should watch because it excludes the changing value of its stock holdings, slipped nearly 6 percent to $12.7 billion, or $8,907 per Class A share.
Geico was the weak spot. Its underwriting profit fell to $1.35 billion from $2.37 billion a year earlier, as insurance premiums declined while the average cost of claims rose, CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said. Insurance underwriting profit across Berkshire fell 43 percent, Reuters reported, and Geico's pretax profit fell 45 percent as accident losses and advertising spending increased.
The buybacks accelerated under chief executive Greg Abel, who took over at the start of 2026 after Warren Buffett's retirement. Berkshire repurchased $4.8 billion of stock in the first half of the year and about $2 billion more in October, Reuters reported. The buybacks likely came to a halt recently as Berkshire's Class A stock price surged past $878,000, topping where it stood before Buffett surprised investors with his retirement plans at the annual meeting in May 2025.
Berkshire's cash pile returned to growing in the third quarter and reached $377.4 billion, up from $365.5 billion at the end of June. The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate owns Geico and several other insurers, the BNSF railroad, a collection of utilities, and manufacturers and retailers including Precision Castparts and See's Candies.
