Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has reduced its stake in Bank of America to 9.99%. The conglomerate sold 9.5 million shares between Tuesday and Thursday, making about $382 million in profits. This latest sale caps off three months of selling, during which Berkshire unloaded a total of 257 million shares.
The sales have netted the company roughly $10 billion. Berkshire remains Bank of America’s largest stockholder, with over 775 million shares valued at around $31 billion. However, by dropping below the 10% ownership threshold, Berkshire is no longer required to quickly report changes in its position to the SEC.
Bank of America’s stock price has fallen more than 9% since Berkshire started selling.
Berkshire cuts Bank of America stake
The stock is still up over 18% year-to-date but trails competitors like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Citigroup.
The bank is set to report third-quarter results on Tuesday. Analysts expect profits to decline from last year and the previous quarter. However, CFO Alastair Borthwick recently said net interest income should grow from Q3 through year-end.
Buffett has a long history with Bank of America. In 2011, he invested $5 billion in the struggling lender after the financial crisis, backing CEO Brian Moynihan. As of June, Bank of America made up 15% of Berkshire’s portfolio, its third-largest holding after Apple and American Express.
Moynihan acknowledged Buffett’s role, saying: “He’s been a great investor for our company and stabilized our company when we needed it at the time.”
