Warren Buffett, chairman and chief executive of conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, said that he would be more likely to buy than sell IBM shares over the next two years, and that he did not seek to profit from global central bank actions.
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Buffett said choosing the next president will be important for the world, but it won’t derail the USA economy.
At last year’s meeting, Buffett also voiced his confidence in the Chinese economy.
Buffett said he was urged to invest in Valeant in the past, but decided against it because he felt the business model was seriously flawed, and experience suggested that any short-term positives would be offset by the long-term negatives. There were plenty of offerings for shareholders attending the event, with goods from some 50 Berkshire businesses available at big discounts.
“Railroad carloading throughout the industry – all of the major railroads – were down significantly in the first quarter, and probably nearly certainly will continue to be down for the balance of the year”, Mr. Buffett said.
Ackman responded by pointing at Berkshire Hathaway’s long-standing investment in Coca-Cola, a company the hedge fund manager claims markets unhealthy products to children. From 8 a.m. ET to 9 a.m. ET, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, a Berkshire Hathaway director, and Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire, join the conversation. Mr. Buffett, who consumes 700 calories of Coke a day, said it seemed wrong to blame calories alone for rising obesity levels.
Berkshire is seen as a friendlier owner, but Mr. Buffett said 3G’s cuts have been “extremely intelligent”, and did not appear a threat to Kraft Heinz’s ability to produce packaged goods.
Valeant has been under significant pressure from lawmakers and shareholders after the company hiked prices for certain drugs.
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Pearson said he and Valeant were too aggressive in their strategy of jacking up prices.
