Berkshire Hathaway repurchases $9B in stock, signaling undervaluation

Berkshire Hathaway just bought back roughly $8.5B of its own stock over a three-month stretch, according to UBS estimates. That’s not a routine capital allocation move. It’s the company’s way of saying, in the most Buffett-coded language possible, that its shares are cheap. The buyback blitz, spanning from approximately April 15 through July 14, represents one of the most aggressive repurchase windows in the conglomerate’s history. And it arrives during a pivotal moment: the company’s first real chapter under new CEO Greg Abel. The numbers behind the buyback wave Berkshire resumed its stock repurchase program on March 4, ending a hiatus that lasted nearly two years. The first quarter was modest by comparison, with roughly $235M in shares repurchased. Then the floodgates opened. Between April 14 and July 14, Class A shares outstanding declined by approximately 11,000. At prevailing market prices, that translates to somewhere between $5B and $11B in total buybacks, with UBS pinning its estimate at about $8.5B. UBS pegs the discount to intrinsic value at around 8%. Abel’s first big capital move The buyback surge is notable for another reason: it’s happening under Greg Abel’s watch. Ab...