Buffett’s Berkshire Boosts Its Stake In Burlington
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Billionaire investor Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. boosted its stake in Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., the second-largest American railroad, to 15%.
Berkshire bought 10.1 million more shares of the Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier, in which it was already the biggest shareholder, from August 23 through yesterday, the company said in a regulatory filing.
The purchases increased Berkshire’s ownership of the railroad by 24% to 52.1 million shares. Berkshire, based in Omaha, Neb., first disclosed rail holdings in April when a filing showed the company’s Burlington Northern stock. Mr. Buffett said in May he also bought shares of Union Pacific Corp. and Norfolk Southern Corp. The disclosure of Berkshire’s initial Burlington Northern stake helped push the Standard & Poor’s 500 Railroads Index to a 35% jump in April, the biggest one-month gain since at least 1989. Mr. Buffett told shareholders at Berkshire’s annual meeting in May that he likes railroad stocks because higher fuel prices have made the carriers more competitive with trucks.
