In this article, Warren Buffett engaged in a significant buying spree in the stock market just before Christmas. Among other purchases during a rapid December sell-off, Berkshire Hathaway acquired an additional 8.9 million shares of Occidental Petroleum for $405 million. This move increased its stake in the Houston-based energy producer to over 28%, as reported in a regulatory filing on Thursday night.
Simultaneously, the conglomerate based in Omaha, Nebraska, also acquired approximately 5 million shares of Sirius XM for about $113 million and around 234,000 shares of VeriSign for roughly $45 million. Given the smaller size of these stakes, it is likely that these transactions were executed by Buffett’s investing deputies Todd Combs and Ted Weschler.
Overall, Berkshire invested over $560 million in stocks over the last three trading sessions. The 94-year-old investor seemed to capitalize on a general market downturn that lowered the prices of these stocks.
Occidental Petroleum’s shares have fallen by more than 10% this month, resulting in a 24% loss for 2024. Despite being Berkshire’s sixth-largest equity holding, Buffett has dismissed the possibility of a complete takeover. On the other hand, Sirius XM experienced a more severe decline, with the New York-based satellite radio company enduring a six-day losing streak, dropping by 23% this month and 62% this year.
Berkshire began increasing its stake in Sirius XM after Liberty Media, owned by billionaire John Malone, finalized a deal in early September to merge its tracking stocks with the remainder of the audio entertainment company. Berkshire’s ownership now stands at approximately 35%. SiriusXM has been struggling with subscriber losses and demographic shifts that are not in its favor.
VeriSign, an internet company, has also faced challenges this year, with its stock declining by 6% in 2024, significantly underperforming the technology sector. Berkshire initially purchased this tech stock in 2013 and has not made any adjustments to its stake in recent years.
Correction: Warren Buffett is 94 years old. An earlier version incorrectly stated his age.
