Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK) published its third-quarter earnings, showing mixed performance across its insurance, railroad, utilities, and energy businesses.
Total revenue jumped to $105.6 billion from $94 billion in the same period last year. However, investment gains came in at $11.9 billion, well below the $21 billion it generated a year earlier. Let’s look at the other key takeaways from the report.
Berkshire Hathaway’s Profits Dropped
While Berkshire Hathaway’s revenue jumped, its income dropped by 26.6% in the third quarter to $22.16 billion. This retreat was driven by the sharp decline in its unrealized investment gains, which dropped from $21.9 billion to $11.95 billion.
A closer look shows that most companies in its portfolio have dropped in the past few months. The most affected are companies like American Express, Bank of America, and Delta Air Lines.
Some of its investments, however, like Apple, Chevron, and Coca-Cola have done well and are hovering near their record highs.
Berkshire’s profit also dropped because of weaker underwriting results. Pre-tax underwriting profit fell to $1.68 billion from $3.16 billion in the same period last year. GEICO’s pre-tax underwriting earnings declined from $1.77 billion to $982 million.
Railroad Business is Doing Well Despite Trade Issues
Meanwhile, Berkshire Hathaway’s railroad business is doing well, even as fuel costs rise and trade issues between the US and Iran intensify. The railroad transportation business, which is mostly made up of BNSF, made $6.8 billion in Q3 from $5.98 billion in Q3’25. Its revenue rose to $19.3 billion in the first nine months of the year.
This revenue growth translated into higher profits, with the pre-tax earnings rising by 18.2% to $2.27 billion. This growth was mostly because of higher shipping volumes and improved efficiency.
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Sees Modest Growth
The report also showed that Berkshire Hathaway Energy’s business did modestly well, with its revenue rising to $6.5 billion. Its pre-tax earnings rose by 18.2% to $1.08 billion, driven by its utilities and interstate natural gas pipelines.
Meanwhile, Berkshire Hathaway’s balance shows that the company’s cash is rising. Its cash and equivalents rose to $377 billion during the quarter. Its cash and equivalents dropped to $36 billion, while its short-term investments rose to $336 billion from $321 billion in the same period last year.
As a result, the company announced that it boosted its share repurchases in the quarter. It repurchased shares worth $9.6 billion, more than double what it bought last year.
These earnings came at a time when Berkshire’s shares are doing well. The Class A shares jumped to a record high of $878,395, up by 25% from the year-to-date low.
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