Berkshire Annual Report

Berkshire Hathaway

Warren Buffett

Research

140 Pages

Berkshire Hathaway’s 2018 annual report reflects on long term capital allocation, business performance, and market volatility, with Warren Buffett emphasizing discipline amid a late year equity drawdown. It highlights a $25 billion operating earnings figure and a sharp unrealized investment loss that skewed reported results.

Key Takeaways

Operating Earnings Growth: Operating earnings reached approximately $25 billion in 2018, reflecting solid performance across insurance, railroads, and utilities despite market turbulence.
Market Value Decline Impact: Net earnings fell sharply due to $20+ billion in unrealized equity losses under new accounting rules, distorting underlying business strength.
Cash Balance Expansion: Cash and equivalents exceeded $110 billion, signaling limited attractive acquisition opportunities and a cautious stance on capital deployment.
VIEW FULL REPORT

Join our newsletter to have all of this content + Exclusive Newsletter Bonus Content delivered to your inbox every week

Related Content

Alternative Assets
In Wine Country, Sales Are Down and Fraud is Rampant
May 2026
Financial History
The Miracle of Markets and the 100-Year Dataset That Changed the World
Apr 2026
AI
Misanthropic: on Mythos, bad human behaviors and systems vulnerabilities
Apr 2026

The information contained in this communication is of a general nature for informational purposes only, and does not constitute financial, investment, tax or legal advice. The information contained within this communication reflects the opinions of those referenced herein, and do not reflect the opinions of The Idea Farm, L.P. and its affiliates. Such opinions expressed herein are as of the date of production and are subject to change at any time without notice due to various factors, including changing market conditions or tax laws. Where data or information prepared by third parties is presented, no representation, warranty, or undertaking, expressed or implied, is given to the accuracy or completeness of such information by The Idea Farm, L.P. or any other person. While such sources are believed to be reliable, The Idea Farm, L.P. does not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of such information and does not undertake any obligation to update the information contained herein as of any future date. Any links to third party websites are offered only for use at your own discretion. The Idea Farm L.P., and its affiliates, are separate and unaffiliated from any third parties listed herein and are not responsible for their products, services, policies or the content of their website. All investments are subject to varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy or product referenced directly or indirectly in this communication will be profitable, perform equally to any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), or be suitable for your portfolio. Past performance is not an indicator of future results.

Scroll to Top