Berkshire Hathaway reports operating earnings surge, but posts big investment loss amid market rout

An Andy Warhol-like print of Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett hangs outside a clothing stand during the first in-person annual meeting since 2019 of Berkshire Hathaway Inc in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S. April 30, 2022.

Despite fears of slowing growth, Warren Buffet's conglomerate was not immune to the market turmoil.

In the second quarter of 2022, the operating earnings of the conglomerate were $9.283 billion. It was an increase from the same time a year ago.

The company posted a huge loss on its investments. The investor asked investors not to pay attention to the quarterly fluctuations in its investments.

The amount of investment gains/losses in any given quarter is meaningless and can be very misleading to investors who have little or no knowledge of accounting rules.

The S&P 500 lost more than 16% in the second quarter, its biggest one-quarter fall in over a year. The broader market index plummeted in the first half of the year.

The conglomerate's Class A stock fell more than 22% in the second quarter and is now down more than 20% from an all-time high. The S&P 500 has lost more than a third of its value so far this year, but the stock of billionaire investor Warren Buffet is still up 2%.

The company spent $1 billion in the second quarter, bringing the total for the first six months to $4.2 billion. The company bought back more stock in the first quarter than it has done in the last few quarters.

Even though the giant has been more active in deal-making and picking stocks, it still has a huge amount of cash on hand.

Since March, the "Oracle of Omaha" has been increasing his stake in the oil and gas company. The best performing stock in the S&P 500 this year has been Occidental, which has more than doubled in price.

The company said in March that it had agreed to buy Alleghany for $11.6 billion.