Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK)

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Class B
Ticker: NYSE: BRK.B
Price quote on Yahoo Finance: BRK-B

Why do I research on this stock?

Berkshire Hathaway’s flagship BRK.A shares have increased by 3,641,613% from 1965 to 2021 compared to the S&P 500 returning 30,209% over the same period.1

The current portfolio of Berkshire Hathaway (source: Dataroma) consists of 49 companies.

I am considering BRK as an exposure to US markets, focusing in "Technology" and "Financials" sector.

Berkshire Hathaway does not pay dividend but reinvested into the company. As an international investor, this means that I don't have to pay US annual income tax.

Difference Between Berkshire Hathaway's Class A and Class B Shares

ref: Investopedia

The main difference between the two types of shares is their price. On Dec. 31, 2021, Berkshire Hathaway Class A closed at $454,400 per share, compared with $301 per share for the Class B stock.

Berkshire Hathaway Class A is the company's original stock offering.

Class A shares can be converted into an equivalent amount (1,500) of Class B shares any time a Class A shareholder wishes to do so. The conversion privilege does not exist in reverse.

Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares, first issued in 1996, are more modestly priced and have a correspondingly modest share of equity value in the company.

Class B shares are issued initially, 1/30th the price (and equity) of a Class A share of stock
A 50-to-1 stock split in 2010 sent the ratio to 1/1,500th. In other words, each share of a Class A common stock was convertible at any time to 1,500 shares of Class B common stock
Class B shares carried correspondingly lower voting rights as well (of the voting rights of a Class A share 1/200th of the per-share voting rights, later changed to 1/10,000th)