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13. Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway
Get Quote: BRKA
Financials: Latest Results
Rank: 13 (Previous rank: 11)
Compare tool: Berkshire Hathaway vs. Top 10
CEO: Warren E. Buffett
Address: 3555 Farnam St.
Omaha, NE 68131
Phone: 402-346-1400
Website: www.berkshirehathaway.com
"I did some dumb things." Boy, there's a rare bit of self-reproach from Warren Buffett.

In his annual Chairman's letter to Berkshire Hathaway investors, the Oracle of Omaha said that 2008 had some good parts...and some bad. The good? Buffett used his billions to buy pieces of General Electric and Goldman Sachs for a song.

The bad? Berkshire Hathaway's worst performance since 1965. Buffett's dumbest move, he admitted, was buying up shares of ConocoPhillips when oil prices were near their peak. - J.R.

  $ millions % change from 2007
Revenues 107,786.0 -8.8
Profits 4,994.0 -62.2
Assets 267,399.0 —
Stockholders' equity 109,267.0 —
Market value (3/27/2009) 138,790.4 —
Profits as % of  
Revenues 4.6
Assets 1.9
Stockholders' equity 4.6
Earnings per share  
2008 $ 3224.00
% change from 2007 -62.3
1998-2008 annual growth rate % 3.6
Total return to investors %
2008 -31.8
1998-2008 annual rate 3.3
Rank Company 500
rank		 Revenues
($ millions)
1 Berkshire Hathaway 13 107,786.0
2 Allstate 81 29,394.0
3 Liberty Mutual Insurance Group 86 28,855.0
4 Travelers Cos. 99 24,477.0
5 Nationwide 124 19,848.0
6 Loews 174 14,733.0
7 Chubb 203 13,221.0
8 United Services Automobile Association 207 12,912.0
9 Progressive 209 12,840.1
10 American International Group 245 11,104.0
11 Hartford Financial Services 287 9,219.0
12 Assurant 299 8,601.2
13 American Family Insurance Group 388 6,431.3
14 First American Corp. 398 6,213.8
15 W.R. Berkley 490 4,708.8
16 Fidelity National Financial 523 4,329.1
17 American Financial Group 527 4,292.7
18 Cincinnati Financial 570 3,824.4
19 Old Republic International 651 3,237.7
20 Erie Insurance Group 686 3,001.4
21 LandAmerica Financial Group 708 2,876.0
22 Unitrin 715 2,819.7
23 Hanover Insurance Group 725 2,757.1
24 FM Global 766 2,545.1
25 Mercury General 800 2,414.2
26 HCC Insurance Holdings 827 2,279.4
27 Markel 924 1,898.3
28 Radian Group 959 1,808.0
29 MGIC Investment 999 1,721.5
Issue date: May 4, 2009
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