Berkshire Hathaway reported a significant increase in operating income for the third quarter.
The conglomerate’s cash stockpile soared to nearly $382 billion, a new record.
Warren Buffett will step down as Berkshire’s CEO at the end of the year.
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Here’s our initial take on Berkshire Hathaway‘s (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) third-quarter financial report.
Metric | Q3 2024 | Q3 2025 | Change | vs. Expectations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Revenue | $93 billion | $94.97 billion | 2% | Beat |
Operating earnings | $10.09 billion | $13.485 billion | 34% | Beat |
Cash and short-term investments | $325.2 billion | $381.7 billion | 17% | n/a |
Insurance underwriting income | $750 million | $2.37 billion | 216% | n/a |
First, let’s start with the operating earnings generated by Berkshire Hathaway’s businesses, and this was good news. The company generated $13.5 billion in operating income, up by 34% year over year, and there were a couple of main drivers. For one thing, insurance underwriting income normalized in the third quarter ($2.4 billion vs. $750 million a year ago), partly thanks to a generally less active natural disaster season.
Income from the BNSF Railroad business grew 5% year over year, while income from the Berkshire Hathaway Energy business fell by 9%. Insurance investment income was lower, but this was mainly due to the lower interest rate environment compared with 2024 (this includes interest from Berkshire’s Treasury securities).
Speaking of Berkshire’s Treasury securities, the cash and short-term Treasuries on the balance sheet are always closely watched by investors. And this figure soared to a new all-time high of nearly $382 billion at the end of the third quarter. Berkshire had unmatched financial flexibility already, and this makes it even greater.
There are a few reasons why the cash stockpile swelled by nearly $40 billion. For one thing, Berkshire generated $13.5 billion in operating income as previously mentioned. Second, Berkshire didn’t buy back any shares once again during the third quarter.
Finally, Berkshire likely sold some stocks during the quarter, perhaps paring down its Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) investment further, as the reported cost basis in “consumer products” stocks declined significantly. We won’t know for sure until the company files its 13-F with the SEC in a couple of weeks.
Berkshire Hathaway is one of the few companies in the market that reports its earnings over the weekend, so there’s no immediate market reaction to discuss. Warren Buffett has said that this is a calculated move that allows Wall Street to digest the numbers before any trading takes place.
