Warren Buffett’s Berkshire continues to take profits in Chinese EV maker BYD
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has sold more of its stake in BYD , after being the biggest Chinese electric-vehicle maker’s most famous backer in over a decade. Berkshire dumped 1.72 million Hong Kong-listed shares of BYD for around $57 million, according to a filing released Friday. After the sale, the Omaha-based conglomerate still owns a 18.87% stake in BYD, the filing showed. Earlier this week, Berkshire had sold 1.33 million H shares of BYD for around $47 million, following strong earnings from the EV company. H shares of BYD have tumbled nearly 14% this week alone as the “Oracle of Omaha” began his selling. The stock is down more than 14% in 2022. BYD is based in southern China and opened its North American headquarters in Los Angeles in 2011. BYD has been a lucrative bet for Berkshire, which first bought about 220 million shares in September 2008. The stake has ballooned to $8 billion over the years amid the massive growth in EV market. The stock has jumped more than 600% in the past 10 years. Buffett gave credit to Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire and his longtime business partner, for identifying the potential in BYD. Munger’s friend Li Lu, founder of Seattle-based asset manager Himalaya Capital, has been associated with introducing the 98-year-old investor to a slew of Chinese stocks, including BYD, Alibaba and Pinduoduo.