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19. Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway
Financials: Latest Results
Rank: 19 (Previous rank: 28)
CEO: Warren E. Buffett
Employees: 260,519
Address: 3555 Farnam St.
Omaha, Nebraska  68131
Country: U.S.
Website: www.berkshirehathaway.com

Berkshire Hathaway had a solid year in 2010. The company's $26 billion acquisition of Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad as the year began paid off, and CEO Warren Buffett continued to pile up cash and look for other good places to put it.

But Berkshire has seen its stock slump in 2011, with the price of the shares down by about 5% year-to-date. Troubles involving former Berkshire executive David Sokol certainly haven't helped matters. Sokol, who many thought the heir apparent at Berkshire, resigned from the company in March amid insider trading questions, leaving some investors concerned about who would lead Berkshire post-Buffett.

Still, Buffett's mantra has been not to be bothered by short-term fluctuations in stock prices, and many analysts are saying that the current dip in Berkshire's shares could offer investors a rare shot to get in on a great company. --S.D.


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Is Berkshire Hathaway a great company, or what?
  $ millions % change from 2009
Revenues 136,185.0 21.1
Profits 12,967.0 61.0
Assets 372,229.0 --
Stockholders' equity 157,318.0 --
Profits as % of  
Revenues 10
Assets 3.5
From the July 25, 2011 issue
Editor's note: Chrysler Group was erroneously omitted from the Global 500 listing. With revenue of $41.9 billion, Chrysler ranks No.205 among all the companies in the world and 61st in the U.S. As a result, Bristol-Myers Squibb, which had ranked No.500, falls off the list. Updates may be found for the full list, rankings by country, and the list of arrivals. Fortune regrets the error.
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Rank # of Global 500 Companies
U.S. 133
Japan 68
China 61
Company 2010 Number of Employees
Wal-Mart Stores 2,100,000
China National Petroleum 1,674,541
State Grid 1,564,000
Company 2010 Profits
($ millions)
Nestlé $32,843
Gazprom $31,895
Exxon Mobil $30,460
FAQ and methodology
All companies on the list must publish financial data and report part or all of their figures to a government agency. In the U.S., private companies and cooperatives... More
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