Berkshire Hathaway's market value exceeds $1 trillion for the first time, becoming the first non-tech American company to do so! Buffett is still selling Bank of America to stockpile bullets

On Wednesday, the stock price of Berkshire Hathaway, owned by the legendary investor Warren Buffett, rose by over 1%, surpassing the $1 trillion market cap milestone for the first time, making it the first non-tech industry company in the United States to join the "trillion-dollar club."

Currently, the world's largest companies by market cap are predominantly dominated by tech enterprises, including Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Google's parent company Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta. The only non-tech enterprise with a market cap exceeding $1 trillion is Saudi Aramco, the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.

This year, due to Berkshire's strong performance in the insurance sector and the expectation of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve at the September meeting, the market's optimistic sentiment towards the economy has been continuously strengthening, boosting Berkshire's stock price. The company has risen by approximately 30% year-to-date, significantly outperforming the broader U.S. stock market, with the S&P 500 index rising by about 18% during the same period. This year also marks one of the best annual starts for Berkshire in the past decade.

In just this year alone, Berkshire's market cap has increased by over $200 billion, setting a new historical record for the company, although this increase contrasts sharply with Nvidia's nearly $2 trillion market cap surge. However, compared to the highly sought-after tech giants in the U.S. stock market, Berkshire's year-to-date performance is not far behind.

It is worth noting that from a technical analysis perspective, indicators such as the Relative Strength Index (RSI) have shown that Berkshire has entered a technically overbought zone.

Warren Buffett has spent most of his life transforming Berkshire Hathaway from a struggling textile manufacturer into a vast business empire. He shaped the company together with his long-time business partner, Charlie Munger. Munger passed away last November at the age of 99.

From 1965 to last year, Berkshire's market cap grew by about 20% annually, nearly double the annual return rate of the S&P 500 index during the same period. This has made Buffett one of the wealthiest people in the world. Berkshire's annual shareholder meeting has also become a "pilgrimage" in the investment community.

Bloomberg quoted Steve Check, the founder and chief investment officer of Check Capital Management, a firm managing around $2 billion in assets and Berkshire's top holding:

Berkshire moves relatively slowly, but with more certainty. Making money in a traditional way is more difficult.

Berkshire's large stake in Apple has become a concern, reducing this risk is a wise move. This eliminates a lot of risk.

Some industry insiders have also mentioned the headwinds that Berkshire may face in the future, including the uncertain prospects of its core businesses not necessarily becoming brighter; and the significant reduction in holdings of Apple, Bank of America, and the accumulation of a large amount of cash, which may be affected by lower rates as the Federal Reserve cuts rates, impacting the return on its record cash reserves.

The latest news shows that in a filing submitted to U.S. regulators on Tuesday evening local time, Berkshire Hathaway disclosed that on August 23, 26, and 27, the company once again sold shares of Bank of America, totaling $982 million. **

Berkshire Hathaway began intensively selling Bank of America stocks, which were its second largest holding, in July this year. During the August stock market crash in the US, the selling was temporarily suspended, and then resumed as the US stock market rebounded.

Since mid-July, Berkshire Hathaway has reduced its Bank of America holdings by nearly 13% through a series of sell transactions, cashing out a total of $5.4 billion. Based on Tuesday's closing price, Berkshire Hathaway still holds 903.8 million shares of Bank of America, valued at $35.9 billion.

According to analysis by Wall Street News, when the price of Bank of America's stock is below approximately $39, Berkshire Hathaway does not sell. Buffett's latest actions also follow this pattern.

Buffett has remained silent on the reasons for reducing his holdings in Bank of America, Apple, and other positions. The market generally believes that his continued selling is to prepare for "hard times" ahead and to leave enough ammunition