Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK) (NYSE:BRK) said Saturday that first-quarter 2026 net earnings attributable to shareholders climbed to $10.106 billion, more than double the $4.603 billion posted a year earlier, as operating profit rose despite investment-market swings. The results arrive as a $373 billion cash pile takes center stage and the stock has lagged: Berkshire is down 11.19% year over year while the S&P 500 gained 29.5%.
According to Berkshire Hathaway’s earning report, operating earnings of $11.346 billion for the quarter, up from $9.641 billion, while investment gains and losses were a $1.240 billion drag versus a $5.038 billion hit in the prior-year period. Net earnings per average equivalent Class A share were $7,027 and Class B were $4.68, compared with $3,200 and $2.13, respectively, a year earlier.
That gap between business performance and share performance has become part of the investor conversation, with some shareholders looking for CEO Greg Abel to demonstrate his approach before adding exposure. Lawrence Cunningham, a University of Delaware governance professor, said some buyers may want to see Abel “prove himself in his job,” even as he described the market as “expressing caution.”
Berkshires Earnings: What Lies Beneath?
According to the earning report, Berkshire also cautioned that quarterly net income can be distorted by GAAP rules that route unrealized equity moves through earnings, and it argued those figures can mislead investors who don’t follow the accounting details. According to Berkshirehathaway, investment results included about $7.0 billion of losses tied to shifts in unrealized gains on equity holdings during the quarter, along with $5.8 billion of after-tax realized gains from selling investments.
Within operating earnings, insurance underwriting contributed $1.717 billion, up from $1.336 billion, while insurance investment income slipped to $2.679 billion from $2.893 billion. BNSF generated $1.377 billion versus $1.214 billion, Berkshire Hathaway Energy delivered $1.114 billion versus $1.097 billion, …
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