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Berkshire Hathaway Reports 18% Rise in First-Quarter Profit as Cash Nears $400 Billion

According to the company, first-quarter profit and revenue rose as Berkshire built record cash reserves of $397 billion, aided by narrower investment losses and $8.1 billion in net stock sales.

Fact Check
All key claims are strongly corroborated by multiple authoritative sources published on May 2, 2026. Bloomberg and Bloomberg Law confirm operating earnings rose ~18% YoY to $11.35 billion in Q1 2026. The record cash pile of $397 billion is confirmed by all sources. The $8.1 billion in net stock sales is confirmed by Bloomberg and NDTV Profit. The reference to 'narrower investment losses' is consistent with the reported context of equity sales and improved insurance underwriting. The claim accurately reflects Berkshire Hathaway's Q1 2026 financial results.
Summary

Berkshire Hathaway reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of $93.68 billion, operating profit of $11.35 billion, up 18% year over year, and net profit of $10.11 billion versus $4.60 billion a year earlier. Investment losses narrowed to $1.24 billion from $5.04 billion, while cash reserves climbed to a record $397 billion, near $400 billion. The increase in liquidity came as Berkshire sold $8.1 billion more in stocks than it bought during the quarter, and its fixed-income securities portfolio had a fair value of $17.669 billion at quarter-end.

Terms & Concepts
  • Operating profit: Profit from core business activities before non-operating items, showing how the main business performed during the period.
  • Cash reserves: Money held by a company to support operations, investments, and financial flexibility.
  • Fixed-income securities: Debt investments such as bonds that generate interest income and return principal at maturity.