# Berkshire Hathaway more than doubles buybacks in third quarter as earnings decline

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/berkshire-hathaway-more-than-doubles-buybacks-in-third-quarter-as-earnings-decline/
- Published: 2026-11-07T14:02:49+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-07T14:18:18+00:00
- Original publisher: CNBC (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/07/berkshire-hathaway-q3-2026-earnings-buybacks.html
- Topics: Business, Companies

## Key points

- Berkshire repurchased $9.6 billion of shares in the third quarter.
- Operating earnings fell 5.8% as insurance profits weakened.
- Its shares rose while the S&P 500 declined over the past month.

## Summary

Berkshire Hathaway more than doubled its share buybacks in the third quarter, repurchasing $9.6 billion of its own stock as operating and overall earnings declined. The increase brings its 2026 buybacks to about $14.4 billion and signals a larger use of capital for repurchases during a quarter when insurance profits weakened.

Operating earnings fell 5.8% year on year to $12.705 billion. Insurance underwriting profit dropped 43% to $1.352 billion and investment income fell 14% to $2.734 billion, while railroad, energy and manufacturing earnings rose. Overall earnings declined 28% to $22.112 billion, with investment gains nearly halving to $9.407 billion; Berkshire shares gained more than 12% over the past month as the S&P 500 fell 5.5%.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.