Marubeni (OTC:MARUF) Stock, Quote.Headers.trade-ideas

Marubeni Corp is a general trading company. It focuses on both trading and business investments in grain fields, natural resource and energy fields, and power generation fields. Investing in farms, power plants, mines, transportation systems, and other distributors allows the company to sell resources to the world market. Marubeni has entered these various markets through multiple avenues. It may either acquire an existing business or develop an entire project internally. The two regions generating the most sales are Japan and the United States. Approximately half of sales derive from Japan, with another third coming from the United States.

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One of the most well-known investors of all time is seeing his recent investment activity called out by a more recent well-known investor.

Are the comments praise or an attempt to take on his legacy?

Chamath Palihapitiya Calls Out Warren Buffett&#39;s Japanese Investments: Is He Throwing Shade Or Praising The Legendary Investor?

Warren Buffett&#39;s Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: BRK) announced Monday that it has increased its stakes in Japan&#39;s top five trading 

Warren Buffett&#39;s Berkshire Hathaway Raises Stake In 5 Japanese Trading Houses

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Warren Buffett consistently demonstrates a knack for spotting undervalued companies and making calculated, often surprising moves.

One of his more recent ventures took an unexpected turn to the Far East, with stakes in five Japanese companies ballooning to $17 billion in less than three years.

Warren Buffett&#39;s Bets On This Country Tripled To $17 Billion: Hint, It&#39;s Not The US

Marubeni Corp

One of the most well-known investors of all time is seeing his recent investment activity called out by a more recent well-known investor.
Are the comments praise or an attempt to take on his legacy?
What Happened: Legendary investor and Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/brk-a#NYSE">BRK-A</a>)(NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/brk-b#NYSE">BRK-B</a>) CEO <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/warren-buffett">Warren Buffett</a> has been increasing his bets on Japanese stocks and enjoying strong returns&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/06/32865614/warren-buffetts-bets-on-this-country-tripled-to-17-billion-hint-its-not-the-us">in recent months.</a>
The investment strategy saw&nbsp;his ownership stakes in the Japanese companies increase and came&nbsp;at a time when major Japanese stock market indexes <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/05/32403975/japanese-stocks-rallied-five-weeks-in-a-row-after-warren-buffetts-bet-outperforming-a-nearly-flat-s">outperformed the key American stock index metrics.</a>
Investor <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/chamath-palihapitiya">Chamath Palihapitiya</a>, who was once labeled as the &quot;next Buffett&quot; by the media, took to Twitter to share his thoughts on Buffett&rsquo;s strategy.
&ldquo;I was really curious about Buffett&rsquo;s ownership of the Japanese trading companies and wanted to understand why he did it? As it turns out, the trade is really brilliant,&rdquo; Palihapitiya <a href="https://twitter.com/chamath/status/1671806525029986304">tweeted</a>. &ldquo;He found a group of companies that had very low volatility, grew earnings predictably, had a good dividend and, in most cases, were buying back their stock.&rdquo;
Palihapitiya said the next step by Buffett is one that is &ldquo;awesome.&rdquo;
&ldquo;As far as I can tell, he issues Japanese debt at very low rates, uses the proceeds to buy the stocks and then uses the dividends he then gets from owning these stocks (which are greater than the interest rates he&rsquo;s paying to borrow in the first place) to pay the coupon!&rdquo;
The investor said this could be a &ldquo;near-risk less bet&rdquo; by borrowing trillions of Japanese Yen for free and using the proceeds to buy stakes in companies that are &ldquo;growing earnings in the mid-teens.&rdquo;
&ldquo;And over a 10-20 year holding period, he becomes insensitive to currency vol and so really can&rsquo;t lose money. He locks in the earnings gains over this period along with whatever spread he keeps between his dividends and his coupons.&rdquo;
The risk for Buffett is the concern that the Japanese economy could totally blow up, which Palihapitiya said is &ldquo;pretty unlikely&rdquo; as the companies in question are also exposed to the rest of the world.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s inspiring to see folks act this intelligently at scale. That&rsquo;s why he&rsquo;s the (GOAT).&rdquo;
Related Link: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/06/32915688/chamath-palihapitiya-sounds-the-alarm-corporate-america-running-into-massive-debt-wall">Chamath Palihapitiya Sounds The Alarm-Corporate America Running Into Massive Debt Wall</a>
Why It&rsquo;s Important: The post by Palihapitiya drew plenty of responses from the public and his 1.6 million followers on Twitter.
One user questioned the potential criticism of Buffett as he once compared himself to the famed investor. Palihapitiya said he never compared himself to Buffett and it was the media.
&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t trust what you read,&rdquo; Palihapitiya said.
Another user said this was misleading as the shareholder letters issued by Social Capital in 2018, 2019 and 2020 compared early returns of his&nbsp;Social Capital to Berkshire Hathaway.
&ldquo;You chose Buffett as your benchmark. Which is comparing yourself to him,&rdquo; the user said.
Palihapitiya said this was different than a comparison and was only a benchmark.
One user was quick to point out that Buffett is producing a crazy return on equity by borrowing at 0% to 1% and investing in 7% to 10%. Palihapitiya said it could be better than this with borrowing at 1% to 2% and investing at 12% to 14%.
Palihapitiya acknowledged a user that called Buffett&rsquo;s strategy as yield farming by calling it &ldquo;OG yield farming.&rdquo;
A user asked what it was that the Japanese companies Buffett has invested in do and how he can use this investment strategy.
&ldquo;They are middlemen that trade in various commodities for many economies in the world. So as long as the world needs &lsquo;stuff&rsquo; these folks will provide it for a small fee&hellip;hence it&rsquo;s bet levered world GDP which tends to grow over long periods of time,&rdquo; Palihapitiya said.
Palihapitiya added the Berkshire Hathaway can issue debt anywhere on the planet.
Short seller<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/muddy-waters"> Muddy Waters</a> replied to Palihapitiya&rsquo;s post asking if it &ldquo;depends on what the definition of &lsquo;is&rsquo; is.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t worry about this mid level bullsh**. I&rsquo;m just trolling these guys,&rdquo; Palihapitiya told Muddy Waters.
The comments by Palihapitiya come as Buffett&rsquo;s bets on five Japanese companies have grown from $6 billion to $17 billion.
Berkshire Hathaway <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/06/32913032/warren-buffetts-berkshire-hathaway-raises-stake-in-5-japanese-trading-houses">took 5% stakes</a> in several Japanese companies back in August 2020, positions which have increased along the way. The Japanese companies are:
Itochu Corp (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/itocf#OTC">ITOCF</a>)
Marubeni Corp (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/maruf#OTC">MARUF</a>)
Mitsubishi Corp (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/msbhf#OTC">MSBHF</a>)
Mitsui &amp; Co Ltd (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/mitsy#OTC">MITSY</a>)
Sumitomo Corp (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ssumf#OTC">SSUMF</a>)
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/politics/23/06/32906347/chamath-palihapitiya-hosts-fundraiser-for-robert-kennedy-jr-i-saw-a-really-authentic-and-sensiti">Chamath Palihapitiya Hosts Fundraiser For Robert Kennedy Jr: &#39;I Saw A Really Authentic And Sensitive Person</a>
Photo: CP via Shutterstock, Buffet via White House (Public Domain) 
&nbsp;

Chamath Palihapitiya Calls Out Warren Buffett's Japanese Investments: Is He Throwing Shade Or Praising The Legendary Investor?

Warren Buffett&#39;s Berkshire Hathaway Inc&nbsp;(NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/brk#NYSE">BRK</a>) announced&nbsp;Monday that it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/06/32865614/warren-buffetts-bets-on-this-country-tripled-to-17-billion-hint-its-not-the-us" target="_blank">has increased its stakes in Japan&#39;s top five trading houses</a>. This move is believed to have contributed to the robust momentum driving the nation&#39;s stock market to reach multiyear highs.
The company holds stakes in&nbsp;Itochu Corp.&nbsp;(OTCPK: ITOCF),&nbsp;Marubeni Corp.&nbsp;(OTCPK: MARUF),&nbsp;Mitsubishi Corp.&nbsp;(OTCPK: MSBHF),&nbsp;Mitsui &amp; Co. Ltd&nbsp;(OTCPK: MITSY), and&nbsp;Sumitomo Corp.&nbsp;(OTCPK: SSUMF).
Berkshire&nbsp;said its stakes in these companies now average more than 8.5%. The Japanese companies&#39;&nbsp;aggregate value considerably exceeds Berkshire-held public stocks in any other country outside of the U.S.
In 2020, Berkshire first bought stakes in Japan&#39;s trading houses.&nbsp;
&quot;The tailwinds for Japanese equities continue to multiply,&quot; Reuters quoted Charu Chanana, market strategist at broker Saxo Markets&nbsp;in Singapore, as saying.
Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/06/32881813/warren-buffetts-151-billion-gamble-customers-wont-trade-their-apple-iphones-for-10-000-and-heres-why">Warren Buffett&#39;s $151 Billion Gamble: Customers Won&#39;t Trade Their Apple iPhones For $10,000, And Here&#39;s Why</a>
&quot;While it was previously hinted that Berkshire will increase its stake, the announcement has come somewhat sooner than expected and will further boost optimism on Japanese stocks,&quot; Chanana said.&nbsp;
Berkshire remains committed to maintaining its Japanese investments for the foreseeable future. With regard to pricing, the company said it is open to expanding its holdings in any of the five assets, with a maximum stake of 9.9%.
Earlier in April, Buffett traveled to Japan and met with the CEOs of each of the five companies.
According to regulatory filings from June 12, the trading firms&#39; reports revealed Berkshire Hathaway&#39;s ownership percentages as follows: 7.4% of Itochu&#39;s stock, 8.3% of Marubeni and Mitsubishi&#39;s stock, 8.1% of Mitsui&#39;s stock&nbsp;and 8.2% of Sumitomo&#39;s stock, reports Reuters.
Now Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/06/32817154/warren-buffett-transformed-his-neighbors-life-savings-of-67-000-into-400-million">Warren Buffett Transformed His Neighbor&#39;s Life Savings Of $67,000 Into $400 Million</a>
Photo via Shutterstock.&nbsp;

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Raises Stake In 5 Japanese Trading Houses

Warren Buffett consistently demonstrates a knack for spotting undervalued companies and making calculated, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/warren-buffett">often surprising moves</a>.
One of his more recent ventures took an unexpected turn to the Far East, with stakes in five Japanese companies ballooning to $17 billion in less than three years.
In August 2020, Buffett&rsquo;s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/BRK-A">BRK-A</a>) (NYSE: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/BRK-B/news">BRK-B</a>) veered away from its familiar U.S.-based investments to snap up 5% stakes in the following companies:
Itochu Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ITOCF#OTC">ITOCF</a>) 
Marubeni Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MARUF#OTC">MARUF</a>) 
Mitsubishi Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MSBHF#OTC">MSBHF</a>) 
Mitsui &amp; Co Ltd (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MITSY#OTC">MITSY</a>) 
Sumitomo Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SSUMF#OTC">SSUMF</a>)
Being dubbed the &ldquo;Oracle of Omaha&rdquo; is no small feat, and the Japanese investments illustrate why he holds the title.
Since those initial investments, he&#39;s added more to the positions, to the tune of 7.4%. With the Japanese stocks soaring to multi-decade highs, the $6 billion investment is now worth $17 billion, a gain of about 183%, placing Berkshire&rsquo;s Japanese holdings amongst its largest positions.
Read also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/06/32860674/if-you-invested-1-000-in-berkshire-hathaway-when-warren-buffett-became-the-worlds-richest-person-her">If You Invested $1,000 In Berkshire Hathaway When Warren Buffett Became The World&rsquo;s Richest Person, Here&rsquo;s How Much You&rsquo;d Have Today</a>
By the end of 2021, only nine of Berkshire&rsquo;s top 15 holdings were over the $4 billion mark &mdash; now, three of its Japanese holdings sit above that line, <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-japan-stock-price-portfolio-shareholder-returns-2023-6?utm_source=facebook&amp;utm_campaign=business-sf&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;fbclid=IwAR0VqYiMDqf2cdwg0wBL02_Pf2btGPu1zbKEEnOgZoFTlfoJVtN5wRkDlOY">according</a> to Business Insider.
Buffett isn&rsquo;t one to make moves without a calculated strategy. In Berkshire&rsquo;s annual meeting in May, he pointed out that the companies were &ldquo;ridiculously&rdquo; undervalued, deeply ingrained in industries familiar to Berkshire, and large enough to make a significant impact on Berkshire&rsquo;s earnings.
But what does Buffett&rsquo;s Far East venture mean for the everyday investor? There are opportunities to follow in Buffett&rsquo;s footsteps by investing in Japanese equities through exchange-traded funds.
Two notable options are the iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/EWJ#NYSE">EWJ</a>) and the WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/DXJ#NYSE">DXJ</a>) The former is vulnerable to fluctuations in the value of the Japanese yen versus the dollar, while the latter hedges against such currency swings, providing a safer bet for U.S.-based investors.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/05/32403975/japanese-stocks-rallied-five-weeks-in-a-row-after-warren-buffetts-bet-outperforming-a-nearly-flat-s">Japanese Stocks Rallied Five Weeks In A Row After Warren Buffett&rsquo;s Bet, Outperforming A Nearly Flat S&amp;P 500</a> 
Photo: Shutterstock

Warren Buffett's Bets On This Country Tripled To $17 Billion: Hint, It's Not The US

Warren Buffett-led&nbsp;Berkshire Hathaway Inc&nbsp;(NYSE:&nbsp;BRK-A) (NYSE:&nbsp;BRK-B) has raised its stakes in Japan&#39;s five biggest trading houses, regulatory filings showed.
The move is in line with Berkshire&#39;s statement in 2020 that its investments in the Japanese trading houses were for the long term and the stakes could rise to 9.9%.
Berkshire&#39;s stakes have increased to 6.59% from 5.04% in&nbsp;Mitsubishi Corp, to 6.62% from 5.03% in&nbsp;Mitsui &amp; Co Ltd&nbsp;(OTC: MITST), to 6.21% from 5.02% in&nbsp;Itochu Corp&nbsp;(OTC:&nbsp;ITOCF) (OTC:&nbsp;ITOCY), to 6.75% from 5.06% in&nbsp;Marubeni Corp&nbsp;(OTC:&nbsp;MARUY) (OTC:&nbsp;MARUF), and to 6.57% from 5.04% in&nbsp;Sumitomo Corp.
Takashi Hiroki, the chief strategist at Monex,&nbsp;said&nbsp;he was not surprised that Berkshire had bought more shares, Reuters reported.
&quot;Trading companies&#39; high stock prices are associated with high commodities prices, but there&#39;s much more to their businesses than that,&quot; he said. &quot;Their earnings are good, and shareholder returns are strong.&quot;
Berkshire&#39;s increased investments in the trading houses come after it bought more than $4.1 billion of stock in&nbsp;Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd&nbsp;(NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tsm#NYSE">TSM</a>), a significant foray into the technology sector by the conglomerate.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons

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Warren Buffett's Berkshire Boosts Stake In Five Japanese Trading Houses

Marubeni Corp (OTC: MARUF) announced its plans to acquire a 35% stake in the Eagle Ford shale oil and gas play from Hunt Oil.

Marubeni To Acquire 35% Stake In Eagle Ford Shale

Antofagasta secures $2.5B financing for Centinela mine expansion project

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When Warren Buffett buys a stock he tends to move decisively. It doesn&rsquo;t mean all of the companies will be massive purchases like Apple (NASDAQ:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/aapl-stock-quote/">AAPL</a>) turned into, hogging up 45% of Berkshire Hathaway&lsquo;s (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/brk-a-stock-quote/">BRK-A</a>)(NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/brk-b-stock-quote/">BRK-B</a>) portfolio. Instead, he will take meaningful positions, whether it&rsquo;s dollars spent or as a sizeable percentage of the company&rsquo;s.



Buffett doesn&rsquo;t hesitate to spend billions of dollars on a company he favors, though. While you likely can&rsquo;t do that in your own portfolio, following his lead on his purchases still makes sense.



In the six decades Buffett has helmed Berkshire Hathaway, he has generated returns of 4.38 million percent for investors compared to 32,000% for the S&amp;P 500. Those are investments worth emulating! So if you want to ride his coattails, these are the three best Warren Buffett stocks to buy in April



<h2>Occidental Petroleum (OXY)</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/oxy1600-2-300x169.png" alt="Occidental Petroleum (OXY) Company logo seen displayed on smart phone"><div>Source: IgorGolovniov / Shutterstock.com</div></div>Buffett only bought three stocks in the fourth quarter. One of them was oil company Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/oxy-stock-quote/">OXY</a>). In his <a href="https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2023ltr.pdf">annual letter to shareholders</a>, the Oracle of Omaha extolled the praises of CEO Vicki Hollub. He wrote that under her capable leadership, &ldquo;Occidental is doing the right things for both its country and its owners.&rdquo;



Now investors actually have a choice of oil companies to buy as one of the other three stocks he bought was Chevron (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/cvx-stock-quote/">CVX</a>). I own the integrated oil and gas giant in my own portfolio but I find Occidental a compelling purchase at these prices. The Permian basin specialist trades at a discount to its larger peer on both a price-to-earnings and price-to-free cash (FCF) basis. That means <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/03/dividend-delights-3-stocks-offering-investors-a-double-digit-raise-in-2024/">investors are getting a bargain</a> on the profits Occidental makes as well as on the excess cash it generates.



It&rsquo;s also notable that at the end of 2023, Berkshire Hathaway owned 27.8% of the oil stock. It has SEC permission to buy as much as half of Occidental. And while increasing his stake is possible, Buffett was clear he had no intention of buying the whole thing.



&ldquo;Though we very much like our ownership, as well as the option [to materially increase its stake], Berkshire has no interest in purchasing or managing Occidental,&rdquo; he wrote.



<h2>American Express (AXP)</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/american_express_axp1600-300x169.jpg" alt="the American Express logo etched into wood"><div>Source: First Class Photography / Shutterstock.com</div></div>Although American Express (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/axp-stock-quote/">AXP</a>) wasn&rsquo;t one of the stocks Buffett bought last quarter, the credit card giant still holds a considerable portion of his heart. Enough to call out the stock in the shareholder letter.&nbsp;



He pointed out that as good as the company is, in the past it has gone off the rails. It tried to enter verticals not related to its wheelhouse and failed spectacularly. It was also mismanaged. Buffett underscored, though, that is &ldquo;definitely&rdquo; not the case now.



Yet owning a stock even if you don&rsquo;t buy more shares is a declaration of support for the business. And the company rewarded him (and other investors) for his devotion by increasing its earnings and dividends. AmEx is likely to increase its payout this year by 16%.



For the past decade, the credit card leader has <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/03/7-no-frills-dividend-stocks-for-your-must-own-list/">raised the dividend</a> by a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 11%. Equally important, FCF has grown at an 8.5% CAGR. With an FCF payout ratio of just 10%, there is plenty of room for additional dividends and growth along the lines of what Buffett is expecting for the coming year.



<h2>Japanese Banks</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Japan1600b-300x169.jpg" alt="an aerial view of Tokyo, Japan"><div>Source: Shutterstock</div></div>Here you&rsquo;re getting a five-for-one deal. Buffett owns five Japanese banking giants, each of which was worthy of being mentioned in the annual letter. They are are Itochu (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/itocf-stock-quote/">ITOCF</a>) (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/itocy-stock-quote/">ITOCY</a>), Marubeni (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/maruf-stock-quote/">MARUF</a>),&nbsp; Mitsubishi (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/msbhf-stock-quote/">MSBHF</a>), Mitsui (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/mitsf-stock-quote/">MITSF</a>), and Sumitomo (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/ssumf-stock-quote/">SSUMF</a>) (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/ssumy-stock-quote/">SSUMY</a>).



These are also investments Buffett is all too willing to be a passive, long-term owner of. While he increased his stake in them last year after visiting with the management of each, Buffett said he promised them he would not increase his ownership interest beyond 9.9% of outstanding shares. Berkshire Hathaway now controls about 9% of the shares of each, so don&rsquo;t expect to see him buying much more.



That doesn&rsquo;t mean you shouldn&rsquo;t buy them. Buffett highlighted how management not only was not as aggressive as their United States counterparts in lining their own pockets but they were all far more shareholder-friendly than U.S. bank managers.



Only about 5% of the banks&rsquo; earnings are allocated to dividends. They prefer to allocate more towards building their businesses and repurchasing shares. That&rsquo;s value creation Buffett admires and you should, too.



On the date of publication, Rich Duprey held a LONG position in CVX stock. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com <a href="https://investorplace.com/corporate/investorplace-publishing-guidelines/">Publishing Guidelines</a>.
<div>Rich Duprey has written about stocks and investing for the past 20 years. His articles have appeared on Nasdaq.com, The Motley Fool, and Yahoo! Finance, and he has been referenced by U.S. and international publications, including MarketWatch, Financial Times, Forbes, Fast Company, USA Today, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Cheddar News, The Boston Globe, L&rsquo;Express, and numerous other news outlets.</div><h3>More From InvestorPlace</h3>
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The post <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/04/the-3-best-warren-buffett-stocks-to-buy-in-april-2024/">The 3 Best Warren Buffett Stocks to Buy in April 2024</a> appeared first on <a href="https://investorplace.com">InvestorPlace</a>.

The 3 Best Warren Buffett Stocks to Buy in April 2024

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We knew Warren Buffett occasionally pared his stake in Apple (NASDAQ:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/aapl-stock-quote/">AAPL</a>) stock, <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/02/warren-buffett-watch-why-he-dumped-aapl-and-what-he-bought-instead/">usually for tax purposes</a>. But no one was prepared for him to slash his stake in half.



The Oracle of Omaha revealed in his Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/brk-a-stock-quote/">BRK-A</a>, <a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/brk-b-stock-quote/">BRK-B</a>) earnings filing that his stake in the tech giant had dropped to fewer than 400 million shares. Apple&rsquo;s value at the end of the quarter was just $84.2 billion, meaning Buffett shed just over 49% of his position. It&rsquo;s still his largest holding. But where it once accounted for half of Berkshire Hathaway&rsquo;s portfolio, it&rsquo;s now just 28% of the total.



Shares of Apple tumbled 5% on the news. While it recovered some lost ground, Apple remains 9% below its all-time high reached only a few weeks ago. But Apple wasn&rsquo;t the only stock he sold. Additionally, Buffett cut his stake again Bank of America (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/bac-stock-quote/">BAC</a>), his second largest position.



He did buy more shares of Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/oxy-stock-quote/">OXY</a>), but Buffett was once again <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/02/the-watch-list-is-warren-buffett-still-selling-these-3-stocks/">selling more stock</a> than he was buying. He now has a cash hoard worth $277 billion. He&rsquo;s either preparing for a market crash or planning on making a big purchase &ndash; a really big one.



Either way, be on the lookout for more Warren Buffett stocks to sell in Berkshire Hathaway&rsquo;s portfolio. Let&rsquo;s examine three companies that could be next.



<h2>Capital One Financial (COF)</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cof1600-300x169.jpg" alt="A street view of a Capital One (COF) bank location in New York City."><div>Source: Northfoto / Shutterstock.com</div></div>Although several stocks could be on the chopping block, most are de minimis holdings that won&rsquo;t move the needle. Capital One Financial (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/cof-stock-quote/">COF</a>), on the other hand, is one in which Buffett has a $1.7 billion position. Sure, that accounts for only 0.6% of the portfolio. But as Senator Everett Dirksen is supposed to have once said, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/eliamdur/2021/04/02/a-billion-here-a-billion-there-pretty-soon/">a billion here, a billion there,</a> and pretty soon you&rsquo;re talking real money.



If Buffett&rsquo;s massive sale of Apple stock was in anticipation of a market crash, then it would make sense to dump Capital One Financial. It is one of the <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/04/2-credit-card-stocks-to-buy-and-1-to-sell-april-2024/">most exposed credit card companies</a> on the market, and it is acquiring Discover Financial Services (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/dfs-stock-quote/">DFS</a>). That will make it even more unprotected to a rising tide of delinquencies and defaults.



The Federal Reserve said total <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/">consumer credit outstanding</a> stood at over $5 trillion at the end of June. In comparison, student loans amounted to $1.7 trillion and auto loans stood at just under $1.6 trillion. The consumer is nearing their limit, and if the economy hurtles into recession, credit card companies will be left holding the bag. That makes Capital One Financial a Warren Buffett stock to sell.



<h2>Kraft Heinz (KHC)</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/khc-stock-300x169.jpg" alt="A photo of both the Kraft and Heinz logo"><div>Source: Eyesonmilan/Shutterstock.com</div></div>Buffett has never been hot on Kraft Heinz (NYSE:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/khc-stock-quote/">KHC</a>), admitting <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/25/buffett-says-berkshire-hathaway-overpaid-for-kraft-following-last-weeks-stock-plunge.html#:~:text=%E2%80%9CI%20was%20wrong%20in%20a,%24100%20billion%20in%20tangible%20assets.">the investment was a mistake</a>. &ldquo;I was wrong in a couple of ways about Kraft Heinz,&rdquo; he told CNBC in 2019. &ldquo;We overpaid for Kraft.&rdquo;&nbsp;Though he did offer the caveat that he believes the company is &ldquo;still a wonderful business.&rdquo; 



Buffett helped private equity firm 3G Capital Management <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/world/americas/buffett-brazil-s-3g-team-up-for-23-billion-heinz-buyout-idUSBRE91D0PY/">engineer taking control</a> of H.J. Heinz in 2013. He then maneuvered the ketchup maker to acquire Kraft Foods two years later. But he misjudged its value, paying about $100 billion for tangible assets when it used around $7 billion.&nbsp;



So, it is not the Kraft Heinz business that is the problem, just the price he paid for it. Still, it has been a money-losing bet for Buffett. Over the past decade, it has lost almost 7% in total return. Even though the Oracle of Omaha pulls in around a <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/04/warren-buffett-collects-2-1-billion-in-dividends-every-year-from-these-3-stocks/">half-billion dollars annually</a> in dividend checks, KHC stock is the seventh biggest position in Berkshire Hathaway representing around 4% of the total. The $11.5 billion parked in Kraft Heinz could be deployed somewhere better.



<h2>Japanese Banks</h2>



<div><img width="300" height="169" src="https://investorplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/shutterstock_123482470-1-300x169.jpg" alt="The yen currency symbol illustrated on a red and black background."><div>Source: Shutterstock</div></div>Buffett owns a passel of Japanese banks. I&rsquo;m not sure he would actually sell them because he is not the sort of investor to bail at the first hint of trouble. But it is notable that the Japanese banking system in part caused the market tremors last week.



Five Japanese banks shares are in Berkshire Hathaway: Itochu (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/itocf-stock-quote/">ITOCF</a>, <a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/itocy-stock-quote/">ITOCY</a>), Marubeni (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/maruf-stock-quote/">MARUF</a>),&nbsp; Mitsubishi (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/msbhf-stock-quote/">MSBHF</a>), Mitsui (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/mitsf-stock-quote/">MITSF</a>) and Sumitomo (OTCMKTS:<a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/ssumf-stock-quote/">SSUMF</a>, <a href="https://investorplace.com/stock-quotes/ssumy-stock-quote/">SSUMY</a>). Buffett highly respects their management and has said <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/04/the-3-best-warren-buffett-stocks-to-buy-in-april-2024/">U.S. bankers could learn a thing or two</a> from their Japanese counterparts.



The problem for the Japanese banking system is the yen carry trade. That&rsquo;s when investors borrow money in a low-interest rate country like Japan and invest in currencies in high-rate countries like the U.S.



But, Japan is raising its interest rates just as the U.S. is set to lower them. Unwinding all those trades created havoc as the Japanese central bank struggled to maintain equilibrium. All five of Buffett&rsquo;s banks tumbled hard. While they did regain some losses, several are still down by double-digit percentages from where they traded a month ago.&nbsp;



Mitsui, Sumitomo and Marubeni are all down at least 13% from that time, making the Japanese banks Warren Buffett stocks to sell.



On the date of publication, Rich Duprey did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com <a href="https://investorplace.com/corporate/investorplace-publishing-guidelines/">Publishing Guidelines</a>.



On the date of publication, the responsible editor did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
<div>Rich Duprey has written about stocks and investing for the past 20 years. His articles have appeared on Nasdaq.com, The Motley Fool, and Yahoo! Finance, and he has been referenced by U.S. and international publications, including MarketWatch, Financial Times, Forbes, Fast Company, USA Today, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Cheddar News, The Boston Globe, L&rsquo;Express, and numerous other news outlets.</div><h3>More From InvestorPlace</h3>
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The post <a href="https://investorplace.com/2024/08/3-more-stocks-warren-buffett-might-sell-to-prep-for-a-market-crash/">3 More Stocks Warren Buffett Might Sell to Prep for a Market Crash</a> appeared first on <a href="https://investorplace.com">InvestorPlace</a>.

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