Warren Buffett’s Cash Trap Can Snare Big Tech, Too
The Berkshire Hathaway CEO has more cash than he knows what to do with. But Apple, Amazon and other tech giants face a similar dilemma.
He’s in good company.
Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg
Jeff Bezos, since stepping away from Amazon.com Inc., has become the latest billionaire to head to space. Meanwhile, Facebook Inc.’s Mark Zuckerberg is eyeing life in the metaverse. But don’t expect to see Warren Buffett riding on the next rocket ship for his 91st birthday this month or talking up virtual dimensions in Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s earnings report Saturday.
Unlike some of his ultra-wealthy peers, Buffett still prefers the nuts-and-bolts businesses of Planet Earth, such as keeping people’s lights on and delivering goods by freight train. That old-fashioned mind-set is why Berkshire’s market value hasn’t taken the same rocket ride as Amazon or Facebook, even though its operating earnings are much the same. With Buffett hoarding more than $100 billion of cash at Berkshire the last few years, the perception is that the investing icon has lost his touch in a technology-driven economy that would seem to be full of investment opportunities.