Berkshire: Buffett is not ill
|
|
February 10, 2000: 7:43 p.m. ET
Company says rumors of investment mogul's health problems are false
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Berkshire Hathaway on Thursday denied rumors that its chairman and chief executive Warren Buffett was suffering from health problems, and also denied that it was considering repurchasing shares of its stock.
"While it has been a long standing Berkshire policy to not comment on rumors, we are making an exception with respect to these recent rumors," the company said in a statement. "All rumors regarding share repurchases and Mr. Buffett's health are 100 percent false."
Rumors that Buffett's health was failing reportedly surfaced on Wednesday in the Omaha World-Herald, a daily newspaper that cited friends of Buffett - one of the most closely watched, and richest, investors in the world - saying that he was seriously ill.
That report apparently made its way through several Internet chat sites, which in turn weighed heavily on the Omaha, Neb.-based holding company's stock.
Berkshire's Class A (BRK.A: Research, Estimates) shares dropped to a new 52-week low on Thursday, bottoming out at 45,900 before ending the session 900, or 1.9 percent lower, at 47,600.
Class B (BRK.B: Research, Estimates) Berkshire shares, which are more widely traded, fell as low as 1,500, before finishing the session down 40 at 1,548, a 2.5 percent decline on the day.
Executives at Berkshire were not available for comment on Thursday.
|
|
|
|
|
|