Warren Buffett Says Berkshire Has Taken Stake in Amazon

By Nicole Friedman

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has taken a stake in Amazon.com Inc., Berkshire Chairman Warren Buffett told CNBC on Thursday.

Mr. Buffett said he hadn't personally decided upon the investment but that one of his portfolio managers -- either Ted Weschler or Todd Combs -- made the investment. Berkshire will report its stockholdings as of March 31 later this month.

Mr. Buffett will take the stage and answer shareholder questions at the company's widely attended annual meeting Saturday in Omaha, Neb.

Mr. Buffett has praised Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos in the past and said he erred in not investing in Amazon early on. "I had a very, very, very high opinion of Jeff's ability when I first met him, and I underestimated him," Mr. Buffett said at Berkshire's annual meeting last year.

Neither Berkshire nor Amazon immediately responded to a request for comment.

Berkshire, Amazon and JPMorgan Chase & Co. have launched a joint project called Haven to lower health-care costs for their employees.

Messrs. Weschler and Combs each manage about $13 billion for Berkshire, and Mr. Buffett oversees the rest. The portfolio managers have total freedom to choose their investments, Mr. Buffett has said.

One of the portfolio managers was the first to buy Apple Inc. shares for Berkshire's portfolio. Mr. Buffett subsequently looked into the company and started buying its stock himself. Berkshire owned about 5% of Apple as of the end of 2018.

Write to Nicole Friedman at nicole.friedman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 02, 2019 20:58 ET (00:58 GMT)

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024