Billionaire investing legend Warren Buffett is set to host the Berkshire Hathaway, Inc (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) annual shareholder meeting in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, on Saturday.
Not only will investors be watching closely to see what Buffett says about Berkshire, but they will also be paying attention to Buffett's take on the economy, the banking crisis, inflation and any other topics he is likely to cover at the meeting.
What To Watch: Berkshire investors will first be looking for the company's first-quarter earnings numbers. Analysts are expecting Berkshire to report quarterly adjusted EPS of $3.16 and revenue of $77.55 billion. That number would represent 12.7% revenue growth from a year ago.
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Beyond the top and bottom-line numbers, Wall Street will be paying close attention to anything Buffett says about the banking sector. Bank of America Corp BAC is Berkshire's second-largest stock holding, and the company also has large stakes in Citigroup Inc C, Bank of New York Mellon Corp BK and UBS Group AG UBS.
Buffett may also discuss his largest holding, Apple, Inc. AAPL, which traded higher on Friday following an earnings beat. Buffett may also address a number of general topics, such as his outlook for the economy, his thoughts on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy or his long-running bearishness on Bitcoin BTC/USD.
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Berkshire shareholders will be voting on six proposals on Saturday, all of which Buffett opposes. The proposals include a call for Berkshire to report on addressing climate change annually, and a proposal to remove Buffett from the chairman position. Buffett currently holds 32% of Berkshire's voting power, making it extremely unlikely any of the proposals will pass.
Benzinga's Take: Buffett is known for his brutal honesty and pragmatic approach to investing. Federal Reserve officials, politicians and banking industry executives have all said the banking system is stable, but Buffett's take on the crisis and the credit markets could carry a lot of weight on Wall Street.
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