© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett walks through the exhibit hall as shareholders gather to hear from the billionaire investor at Berkshire Hathaway Inc’s annual shareholder meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, U.S., May 4, 2019. REUTERS/Scott
By Jonathan Stempel
OMAHA, Nebraska (Reuters) – Warren Buffett is set to preside over Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:) Inc’s annual meeting for the 59th time on Saturday as investors make their pilgrimage to hear the investing legend, at a time of turmoil for the banking industry and as trouble looms for the economy.
Tens of thousands of people are flocking to Omaha, Nebraska this weekend for the extravaganza that Buffett, 92, calls “Woodstock for Capitalists.” Attendance is expected to be up significantly from last year, which was the first in-person meeting since the pandemic began, Buffett’s assistant said.
While Berkshire has a succession plan in place, with Vice Chairman Greg Abel slated to succeed Buffett as CEO, investors know that their time to see and hear Buffett and longtime Vice Chairman Charlie Munger is limited.
“Even though I’ve gone for 32 or 33 years, it’s enjoyable, uplifting, and you’re always learning something new,” Paul Lountzis, who makes Berkshire his largest investment at Lountzis Asset Management LLC in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.
“Charlie is 99 and Warren turns 93 on Aug. 30,” Lountzis added, “and you just don’t know how many more you’re going to have.”
Buffett and Munger are due to answer five hours of shareholder questions at the meeting. Abel, who oversees Berkshire’s dozens of non-insurance businesses, and Vice Chairman Ajit Jain, who oversees insurance operations, will join in the morning.
Berkshire has had a succession plan since at least 2006 when Buffett, then 75, told shareholders his board would “show me the door” if his “decay” required it.
Under that plan, Buffett’s eldest son Howard would become non-executive chairman, in part to preserve Berkshire’s culture. Todd Combs and Ted Weschler, who oversee some of Berkshire’s investment portfolio, may take over all of it.
INVESTMENT QUESTIONS ARE LOOMING
Buffett may be asked to address recent U.S. bank seizures, Federal Reserve efforts to fend off inflation while avoiding recession, and the potential fallout if lawmakers in Washington do not raise the ceiling on how much debt the federal government can take on.
Among Berkshire’s largest bank and financial services investments as of Dec. 31 were Bank of…
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