Here's how Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway's most important companies are faring in the coronavirus pandemic

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Elizabeth Holmes will be sentenced on Friday. Her team has filed 130 letters from friends and family seeking leniency.</li><li>One letter came from David Sokol, the former Berkshire Hathaway executive who stepped down amid allegations of insider trading.</li></ul>Elizabeth Holmes is asking for a lenient sentence, and an army of her friends and family have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/theranos-elizabeth-holmes-trial-130-letters-asking-leniency-sentencing-highlights-2022-11">written to the judge to back her up</a>.The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/theranos-founder-ceo-elizabeth-holmes-life-story-bio-2018-4">Theranos founder</a> was <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-holmes-theranos-trial-found-guilty-of-wire-fraud-conspiracy-2021-12">found guilty</a> on four counts of fraud and conspiracy in January and is <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-holmes-theranos-faces-sentencing-new-trial-request-denied-2022-11">due to be sentenced on Friday</a>. She faces a maximum of 20 years in prison for each count on which she was convicted. While prosecutors want 15 years in prison, Holmes' attorneys have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/theranos-elizabeth-holmes-seeks-18-months-house-arrest-avoid-jail-2022-11">asked for 18 months under house arrest</a>. With their plea for leniency, the defense submitted 130 letters from people who know Holmes and want the same.One of these people is another executive who faced his own scandal while CEO: David Sokol. Though he's chairman and CEO of Teton Capital today, Sokol used to be CEO of Berkshire Hathaway's energy subsidiary and was believed to be a likely successor to Berkshire chairman Warren Buffett. While in that role, he bought $10 million worth of shares in chemical company Lubrizol Corporation and days later encouraged Buffett to buy the firm. The acquisition produced $3 million in trading profit for Sokol.The SEC investigated but ultimately <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/sec-drops-case-against-david-sokol-2013-1">decided not to file insider trading charges</a> against Sokol, though Berkshire said he <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/sokol-lubrizol-berkshire-buffett-violated-company-insider-trading-policy-2011-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">violated the company's insider trading policy</a>. Sokol resigned in 2011.In his letter supporting Holmes, Sokol recounted his career and questioned whether the jury in her case knew enough about business to reach an appropriate verdict."Just as Ms. Holmes' decisions were not all flawless, neither is the jury system flawless," he wrote. "I accept the jury's decision in Ms. Holmes' trial. However, I also believe that such a trial revolves around extremely complex business realities which would be complicated for an experienced business person let alone someone not trained in such things as venture capital investing, accounting, proforma projections and related legal concepts and laws. As a knowledgeable investor, I can say with certainty that I would not have found Ms. Holmes guilty on any of the wire fraud charges."Sokol said he knew Holmes to be "kind, smart, and a positive contributor to society.""She will do far better for society if she is able to continue her inventing ways," he argued.Later in his letter, Sokol even invoked Thomas Edison's name to make his case for leniency."Failure, while unfortunate, is understood and recognized as part of the creative process," he wrote. "Thomas Edison failed over 1,000 times by his own estimate. He was not a criminal. Neither is Ms. Holmes."Sokol wrote that he has "no historic family or business relationship" with Holmes but met her in 2015 at a Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans awards event.

Warren Buffett's one-time heir apparent who resigned in disgrace amid accusations of insider trading has pleaded for a judge to be lenient in sentencing Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes

<img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5e524a0cfee23d3db90e67d2-2400/455661210.jpg" alt="warren buffett" />Getty Images / Bill PuglianoWarren Buffett.<ul><li>Warren Buffett shared an unfortunate anecdote in his <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffetts-annual-letter-to-shareholders-biggest-takeaways-2020-2-1028928853">annual shareholder letter</a>.</li><li>One of Berkshire Hathaway's businesses, Lubrizol, suffered a fire last year.</li><li>Luckily for Lubrizol, insurance will cover a lot of its losses.</li><li>Unluckily for Buffett, Berkshire owns one of the key insurers that will pay out to Lubrizol.</li><li>"The Bible instructs us to 'Let not the left hand know what the right hand doeth,' Buffett wrote. "Your chairman has clearly behaved as ordered."</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/international?r=US&amp;IR=T">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.<hr /></li></ul>Warren Buffett shared an unfortunate anecdote involving two of his businesses in his <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffetts-annual-letter-to-shareholders-biggest-takeaways-2020-2-1028928853">annual shareholder letter</a>, <a href="https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2019ltr.pdf">published on Saturday</a>.Lubrizol - an oil-additives specialist which Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/berkshire-hathaway-lubrizol-2011-3?r=US&amp;IR=T">acquired for $9 billion</a> in 2011 - suffered "significant property damage" and "major disruption" after a fire spread to one of its French plants in September, the billionaire investor wrote.Luckily for Lubrizol, insurance will cover a big chunk of its losses. However, that isn't such good news for Buffett."One of the largest insurers of Lubrizol was a company owned by . . . uh, Berkshire," he wrote."In Matthew 6:3, the Bible instructs us to 'Let not the left hand know what the right hand doeth,' Buffett continued. "Your chairman has clearly behaved as ordered."Buffett included the Lubrizol fiasco to underscore the broad scope of Berkshire's operations. The holding company - which inspired <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/google-founders-modeled-alphabet-warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-2019-12-1028737463">Google-parent Alphabet</a> and <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/softbank-masa-son-warren-buffett-rabbit-duck-illusion-rebrand-investor-2020-2-1028899468">Japanese conglomerate SoftBank</a> - counts <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-dream-business-is-sees-candies-2019-7-1028348838">See's Candies</a>, <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-89-mrs-b-fortune-500-ceo-2019-12-1028763487">Nebraska Furniture Mart</a>, NetJets, and Precision Castparts among its businesses.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/10-up-and-coming-fintechs-2019?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=finance&amp;itm_campaign=10-up-and-coming-fintechs-2019-2"><img src="https://static.businessinsider.com/image/5dcb0cab7eece5025933c502" alt="Exclusive FREE Slide Deck: 10 Up and Coming Fintechs by Business Insider Intelligence" style="margin: 0 auto !important; width: 100% !important; min-width: 280px !important; max-width: 640px !important" /></a> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/martin-greenfield-presidents-tailor-2018-5">How this Holocaust survivor became a tailor for US presidents and celebrities</a></h3> <iframe class="bijwplayerclass" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/xnFsJzsy-CEZHWCBG.html" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" style="margin:0px;"></iframe>

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway was burned by a fire last year - and it owns the insurer paying out for the losses

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Many of <keyword id="11915967" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="warren-buffett" source="Orion">Warren Buffett</keyword>'s businesses hiked prices in response to increased costs last year.</li><li><keyword id="11915968" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="berkshire-hathaway" source="Orion">Berkshire Hathaway</keyword> paid higher prices for raw materials, fuel, labor, and distribution.</li></ul>Warren Buffett's <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/brk-b-stock">Berkshire Hathaway</a> faced a sharp rise in the cost of raw materials, fuel, labor, and distribution across a bunch of its businesses in 2021, its <a href="https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/2021ar/2021ar.pdf">annual report</a> shows. Many of its subsidiaries hiked their prices to offset those increases, which helps to show why US <keyword id="11894140" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="inflation" source="Orion">inflation</keyword> has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inflation-cpi-january-price-growth-report-omicron-wave-supply-chains-2022-2?r=US&amp;IR=T">spiked to multi-decade highs</a>.Berkshire is widely seen as a cross-section of corporate America, given its interests in the insurance, energy, real estate, railroad, <keyword id="6362048" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="manufacturing" source="Orion">manufacturing</keyword>, services, and retail industries. The conglomerate's costs jumped in 2021 because the COVID-19 pandemic continued to disrupt global supply chains. Lockdowns and travel restrictions also supercharged demand for products such as manufactured homes, building products, and furniture.Many of Buffett's businesses passed along their increased costs to customers in the form of higher prices last year, and sold more products and services, resulting in <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-winning-businesses-railroads-energy-housing-construction-2022-3#retail-7">double-digit revenue growth</a> across most of Berkshire's divisions.<h2>Here's a roundup of 9 Berkshire businesses hit by inflation in 2021, and how some of them responded:</h2>1. Benjamin Moore, a paint company, saw its manufacturing costs jump after Winter Storm Uri disrupted its supply chain.2. Fruit of the Loom faced a yarn shortage, a shortfall of labor at a key supplier, and higher prices for raw materials and freight. The apparel maker scrambled to find alternative sources of yarn and raw materials last year, and eventually signed up an additional supplier.3. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe (<keyword id="13285794" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="bnsf" source="Orion">BNSF</keyword>) railroad reported elevated wage inflation, and blamed higher energy prices for a $977 million, or 55%, rise in its fuel expenses.4. Lubrizol, a chemicals company, boosted its prices to offset rising costs of raw materials and greater manufacturing expenses.5. Forest River, which makes RVs, cited higher average selling prices as a key driver of its 21% increase in vehicle sales last year.6. The home-furnishings subdivision, which houses <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-89-mrs-b-fortune-500-ceo-2019-12-1028763487">Nebraska Furniture Mart</a>, posted 22% revenue growth last year. The increase reflected stronger customer demand, and price hikes in response to higher inventory and freight costs.7. Clayton Homes, a housing maker, reported higher costs of materials, manufacturing, and distribution. The wider building-products division hiked prices after supply-chain disruptions raised its raw-material and logistics costs.8. PacifiCorp and MidAmerican Energy, both part of <keyword id="12195945" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="berkshire-hathaway-energy" source="Orion">Berkshire Hathaway Energy</keyword>, reported higher costs for thermal generation and purchased power.9. McLane disclosed sizeable increases in personnel and transportation costs, as well as higher fuel costs due to a surge in energy prices. The wholesale supplier of groceries and non-food items blamed shortages of warehouse workers and truck drivers for greater inventory costs and less product availability last year.The company reacted to a reduction in customer-service levels and operating efficiency by spending significantly more on hiring, wages, and benefits.

Warren Buffett's business empire hiked prices to offset soaring costs. Here are 9 Berkshire Hathaway companies that battled inflation in 2021.

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5da8868acc4a0a682b30dd62-2400/gettyimages-73562040.jpg" border="0" alt="Warren Buffett" data-mce-source="Chip Somodevilla / Getty" data-link="http://www.gettyimages.com/photos/warren-buffett?agreementtypes=ed&amp;excludenudity=true&amp;family=editorial&amp;phrase=warren%20buffett&amp;sort=mostpopular" /><a href="http://www.gettyimages.com/photos/warren-buffett?agreementtypes=ed&amp;excludenudity=true&amp;family=editorial&amp;phrase=warren%20buffett&amp;sort=mostpopular">Chip Somodevilla / Getty</a></div></div></div><ul><li>A longtime shareholder in Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has sold his stake and published a laundry list of complaints about the legendary investor.</li><li>"Thumb-sucking has not cut the Heinz mustard during the Great Bull Market of 2009 - 2019," Wedgewood Partners' investment chief David Rolfe said in a letter to shareholders.</li><li>Rolfe highlighted Buffett's missed opportunities, bad investments, and reluctance to deploy his vast pile of cash.</li><li><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/brk-b-stock">Watch Berkshire Hathaway trade live on Markets Insider</a>.</li></ul><hr />A longtime shareholder in Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has sold his stake and published a laundry list of complaints about the legendary investor and his conglomerate.David Rolfe, the investing chief of Wedgewood Partners, dumped his stock after more than 20 years, according to his <a href="https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/5bfe4b_03b9a051772a4b9792c849ed7f74150a.pdf">third-quarter letter to clients</a>. He blamed Buffett's failure to capitalize on gains in several stocks, bad investments, and reluctance to deploy his vast pile of cash."Thumb-sucking has not cut the Heinz mustard during the Great Bull Market of 2009 - 2019," Rolfe said in the letter. "The Great Bull could have been one helluva of an astounding career denouement for Messrs. Buffett and Munger," he added, referring to Buffett's partner Charlie Munger.<h2>Buffett missed out on multiple "layups"</h2>"A few stocks stand out to us as considerable head-scratcher errors that should have been in Buffett's wheelhouse, and should have been good for Berkshire shareholders," Rolfe said.He highlighted Mastercard's 1,521% gain and Visa's 1,137% gain between the start of the bull market on March 9, 2009, and the end of last month. Then he bemoaned the fact those two stocks together make up just 1.5% of Berkshire Hathaway's equity portfolio. "The current combined weighting should be 15.00%!"Rolfe also pointed to Costco and Microsoft as missed opportunities."Buffett has had at his disposal unrivaled expert tutelage on each company in his hind pocket for years - but to no shareholder avail," he said, spotlighting the fact that Munger has been a Costco director for 22 years. Yet Berkshire Hathaway only holds a "whopping" 0.55% stake, Rolfe added, meaning it's largely lost out on Costco's 522% gain during the bull market.Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-investing-strategy-from-warren-buffett-disciple-dev-kantesaria-2019-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A hedge fund manager who turned $126,000 of firmwide assets into $500 million explains his Warren Buffett-esque investment process - and why he's not concerned with today's stock market valuation</a>Rolfe also criticized the so-called Oracle of Omaha for not cashing in on Microsoft's 657% stock gain over the same period, despite his close relationship with Bill Gates, the technology titan's cofounder."Buffett probably spends more time talking with Gates (Gates Foundation and bridge playing too) each day than he does with key Berkshire vice-chairman employees Ajit Jain and Greg Abel," he said."If Buffett can endeavor to figure out the business models of both Apple and IBM enough to pour multi-billions in stock purchases, then figuring out Microsoft's business model under sensei Gates should have been Remedial Technology 101."<h2>Berkshire made several bad investments</h2>"Recent billions in capital investments in notable mistakes such as IBM, Lubrizol, Precision Castparts and Kraft do not inspire confidence that Buffett &amp; Co. are still at the top of their game," Rolfe said.Buffett bought almost $11 billion worth of IBM stock at an average price of $170 in 2011, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/id/45285237">according to CNBC</a>, only to sell his stake in the computing giant at a loss last year. He shelled out nearly $10 billion to buy Lubrizol in 2011, the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703328404576207040639038696">Wall Street Journal reported</a>, then later learned one of his lieutenants at the time bought a $10 million stake in the chemicals firm before recommending it to Buffett, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/apr/30/warren-buffett-big-mistake-david-sokol-lubrizol">according to the Guardian</a>.Berkshire Hathaway <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/berkshire-hathaway-to-buy-precision-castparts-2015-8">bought Precision Castparts</a> at a $37 billion valuation in 2016, dwarfing the industrial manufacturer's $1.5 billion in annual earnings. The industrial manufacturer's profits have been lower than projected, Buffett said at his company's annual shareholder meeting in May. Buffett also <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/25/billionaire-warren-buffett-denies-any-tensions-in-partnership-with-3g-capital.html">admitted to CNBC</a> he paid too much for Heinz to acquire Kraft, and the <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/kraft-heinz-warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-taking-3-billion-hit-2019-2-1027975617">combined group's shares have plunged</a> amid sales declines, accounting issues, and a $15 billion write-down this year.<h2>Buffett hasn't put his cash to work</h2>"Berkshire's current Breaking Bad-style cash hoard," Rolfe said, "continues to be a considerable impediment of growth, rather than our previous hard expectation of a valuable call option on opportunity in the hands of one of the most elite capital allocators extant."He criticized Berkshire Hathaway for neither sharing its <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-record-122-billion-cash-warns-crash-2019-8-1028476169">more than $120 billion in cash</a> with investors nor plowing it into the market. "Buffett seems to abhor returning 'capital paint' to shareholders while his Berkshire canvas is still 'in paint,'" he said. Putting the cash to work "will be paramount if Berkshire Hathaway is to once again regain their former status as a meaningful grower over just baseline US GDP growth."Rolfe ended by signaling his faith in Buffett could still be restored."Any future conviction of ours in Berkshire Hathaway shares will closely mirror that of Buffett's own conviction in Berkshire share buybacks.Read more: <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/berkshire-hathaway-warren-buffett-amazon-investment-made-250-million-2019-5-1028165602">Warren Buffett recently invested in Amazon. It made him nearly $250 million before.</a>Now read: <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-dream-business-is-sees-candies-2019-7-1028348838">Warren Buffett's favorite business is a little chocolate maker with an 8000% return. Here are 5 reasons why he loves See's Candies.</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/10-up-and-coming-fintechs-2019?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=finance&amp;itm_campaign=10-up-and-coming-fintechs-2019"><img src="https://static.businessinsider.com/image/5d5ed980adbcf82f1f1bc60b" alt="Exclusive FREE Slide Deck: 10 Up and Coming Fintechs by Business Insider Intelligence" border="0" style="margin: 0 auto !important; width: 100% !important; min-width: 280px !important; max-width: 640px !important" /></a> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/escape-sinking-car-survival-skills-2017-4">Here's how to escape a flooding vehicle</a></h3> <div> <iframe class="bijwplayerclass" data-player="jwplayer" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/zp3YtZE8-CEZHWCBG.html" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" style="margin:0px;" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><script>function receiveMessage(event){ console.log(event.data.fullscreen); Android.fullscreen(event.data.fullscreen); }window.addEventListener("message", receiveMessage, false);</script> </div> </div>

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway lost a longtime investor who complained 'thumb-sucking has not cut the Heinz mustard'

<img class="float_right" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/4f3d3cfaecad04cd13000047-400-300/bear-4.jpg" border="0" alt="divorce, fighting, bears " />Weeks ago <keyword id="6358963" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Warren-Buffett">Warren Buffett</keyword> called on investors far and wide to be the "credentialed bear" at <keyword id="6362665" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Berkshire-Hathaway">Berkshire Hathaway</keyword>'s massive annual shareholder blowout in Omaha.
Ultimately, Palm Beach hedge fund manager <keyword id="302686" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Doug-Kass">Doug Kass</keyword> was selected, and as "credentialed" bear he got to ask the first question in front of thousands of onlookers today. That's probably tough.
After Berkshire announced earnings yesterday and blew past analyst earnings by $307 a share, it was probably even more tough.
All that said, Kass opened with a valid question, and not one that isn't unheard of when people whisper criticism of Buffett's legendary firm — they ask if in recent years his acquisitions have become too large. 
<a href="http://www.thestreet.com/story/11914079/2/doug-kass-questions-the-berkshire-boys.html">From The Street,</a> where Kass is a contributor:
Kass said, you were "hunting gazelles before, but now you are hunting elephants." He points out that Burlington Northern and Lubrizol have been made at high historical valuations. Richer prices paid will lead to lower returns on acquisitions than in the past, driving slower growth for the company. Does this mean Berkshire is becoming more like a sleepy index than a stock?
Buffett recognized the argument and said, basically, that he's willing to pay for true value.
"We have paid up for good business. There are companies we should have bought 30 years ago that looked expensive then but have done very well. We have now realized that paying up for an extraordinary business is not a mistake." They are trying to avoid missing good opportunities like the ones they passed on previously.
Warren also got the final word of the exchange as the conversation ended.
"You haven't convinced me to sell the stock yet, Doug."
Now everyone can go play bridge.
<a href="http://www.thestreet.com/story/11914079/2/doug-kass-questions-the-berkshire-boys.html">For more from their interaction, head to The Street&gt;</a>

Buffett To Hedge Fund Manager: 'You Didn't Convince Me To Sell The Stock'

<div class="image-container float_right" style="width:400px"><div class="image"><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/50ff48ee6bb3f7d61c00002c-475-356/warren-buffett-15.jpg?maxX=400" border="0" alt="warren buffett" width="400" /></div><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50139345n">CBS Sunday Morning</a></div>Just out: <keyword id="6358963" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Warren-Buffett">Warren Buffett</keyword>'s <a href="http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2012ltr.pdf">annual shareholder letter</a>.
Here are the key points:
<ul>
<li>For just the 9th time, Berkshire's book value rose less than the S&amp;P 500. Buffett calls the year subpar.</li>
<li>Berkshire pursued a couple of "elephants" but mostly came up empty, until the recent big Heinz deal.</li>
<li>Buffett explains his five guidelines for increasing shareholder value: "In summary, Charlie and I hope to build per-share intrinsic value by (1) improving the earning power of our many subsidiaries; (2) further increasing their earnings through bolt-on acquisitions; (3) participating in the growth of our investees; (4) repurchasing Berkshire shares when they are available at a meaningful discount from intrinsic value; and (5) making an occasional large acquisition. We will also try to maximize results for you by rarely, if ever, issuing Berkshire shares."</li>
<li>Berkshire's five biggest non-insurance companies (BNSF, Iscar, Lubrizol, Marmon Group and MidAmerican Energy) broke the goal of having over $10 billion in income this year.</li>
<li>Berkshire's new portfolio managers Todd Combs and Ted Weschler both had portfolios that beat the S&amp;P 500 in 2012.</li>
<li>Both Combs and Weschler now have portfolios of $5 billion to invest.</li>
<li>Buffett expects Berkshire to buy more Coca-Cola, American Express, Wells Fargo and IBM in the future.</li>
<li>CEOs who whine about "uncertainty" are silly (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/buffett-heres-a-message-to-my-fellow-ceos-who-whine-incessently-about-uncertainty-2013-3">see more here</a>)</li>
<li>Contrary to Buffett's expectations, the "float" from Berkshire's insurance businesses continues to grow. He doesn't expect it to continue, but it grew another $2.5 billion last year.<table class="image-container" width="200"><tr><td><div class="image"><img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/51311a8b6bb3f70d2b000002-380-181/screen shot 2013-03-01 at 4.15.04 pm.jpg" border="0" alt="iamge" /></div><a href="http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2012ltr.pdf">Berkshire Hathaway</a></td></tr></table></li>
<li>Glowing section on Ajit Jain, one of the star portfolio managers.</li>
<li>In a section about the company's utility and rail businesses (Mid-American and BNSF) Buffett makes an observation about the company's infrastructure spending. "Whatever you may have heard about our country’s crumbling infrastructure in no way applies to BNSF or railroads generally. America’s rail system has never been in better shape, a consequence of huge investments by the industry. We are not, however, resting on our laurels: BNSF will spend about $4 billion on the railroad in 2013, roughly double its depreciation charge and more than any railroad has spent in a single year."</li>
<li>Buffett still has no intention of paying a dividend. Because of Berkshire's size, it takes even more money to make acquisitions that move the needle. Buffett wants to save the company's cash for the remaining whales in the ocean.</li>
<li>Buffett still likes the newspaper business. For more on why, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-buying-newspapers-2013-3">see here</a>.</li>
<li>Although Buffett voted for Obama, 10 of his newspapers endorsed endorsed Romney.</li>
<li>This year at the annual shareholder meeting, a Berkshire "bear" will be invited to speak.</li>
</ul>
SEE ALSO: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-annual-letter-quotes-2013-3">15 great insights from earlier Buffett letters &gt;</a>

BUFFETT'S ANNUAL LETTER IS OUT: Here Are The Key Points!

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/545b35cedd0895a54d8b45bf-1200-924/juncker.jpg" border="0" alt="Juncker">REUTERS/Francois LenoirJean-Claude Juncker, the new European Commission president, was Luxembourg's prime minister between 1995 and 2013.</img></div></div></div>The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) this morning <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/300-companies-including-pepsi-and-aig-are-securing-secret-deals-to-slash-taxes-2014-11">revealed the details of hundreds of secret tax deals</a> hundreds of world companies and the government of Luxembourg. 
The private deals, which appear to have saved more than 300 companies millions of dollars in tax, are completely legal in Luxembourg.
Here are the 310 companies - which include Pepsi and AIG - <a href="http://www.icij.org/project/luxembourg-leaks/explore-documents-luxembourg-leaks-database">named by the ICIJ in their database of leaked documents,</a> which includes 548 private tax rulings and corporation tax returns. We suggest heading over to the database for more context - it's a fantastic resource. 
Here's the full list (twenty-seven more company names are expected come over the next month):
2PCT 3i Abbott Laboratories ABN Amro Group Abris Capital Partners Abry Partners ABS - CBN Broadcasting Corporation Abu Dhabi Investment Authority Accenture ACE Group Acergy Group (now Subsea 7) Advent International Corporation AEA Investors AHW Capital Management AIG Alexander Eriksen Alfa Group Consortium Allco Finance Group Amazon AMB Property Corporation Amcon Allied Equity Holdings Ameriprise Financial AMP Capital Investors de Spoelberch Family Aozora Bank Apax Partners Guardian Media Group Apex Capital Management Apollo Global Management Apple Arcapita Arch Capital Group Archangel Diamond Corporation Arison Group Artal Group Ärztekammer Westfalen Lippe Atomico Audley Capital Advisors Avenue Capital Group Avery Dennison Corporation AVIVA AXA Group Babcock &amp; Brown Balderton Capital Ball Corporation Baloise Group Banca Delle Marche Group Banca Popolare Dell'Emilia Romagna Banco Bradesco Banco Itaú (now Itaú Unibanco) Banque Martin Maurel Baring Private Equity Asia Bayerische Landesbank BAYTEX Energy Corp BC Partners Belfor Bjarne Borg Blackstone Group Bluebay (now Royal Bank Of Canada) BNP Paribas / Crédit Agricole Boston Consulting Group Bridgepoint Brookfield Asset Management Bucher Industries Group Burberry Group Cargill Carlyle Group Catalyst Investment Managers CB Richard Ellis Group Centerbridge Partners Charterhouse Capital Partners Chateau De Berne Cheyne Capital Management China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec) China Yunnan Metallurgical Group CIRCOR CITCO Citigroup Cliffs Natural Resources CNP Assurances Coach Commerzbank AG Companhia Brasileira De Distribuição COMPASS Group Cordea Savills Covidien Group Credit Suisse Damovo Group Dawnay, Day &amp; Co. Dean Foods Delff Management Developers Diversified Realty Corporation DNB Nor Group Doughty Hanson Draper Fisher Jurvetson DST Systems State Street Group Dubai International Capital DUET Group Dyson EFG Group EMULEX Encore Consumer Capital Englefield Capital (now Bregal Capital) EQT Equity Trust (now Doughty Hanson) ESO Capital Group Eurohold European Property Investors EUSA Pharma (now Jazz Pharmaceuticals) EVRAZ Group Experian Fairfax Financial Holdings FedEx Corp Fidelity Field Point Group Financière Lafayette Finmeccanica Group Fonciere Inea Foresight Group Foster Wheeler Foyer Group FREO Group Friends Provident Fung Group Future Fund G.J. Hannink Gategroup Gazprom GE Group Government Of The Emirate Of Abu Dhabi Gigamedia Limited Group Gildemeister Group Glanbia GlaxoSmithKline Golden Gate Capital Golding Capital Partners Goodman Group Graymont Group Great Atlantic &amp; Pacific Tea Company Groupe Caisse D'Epargne / Groupe Banque Populaire Groupe LCF Rothschild (now Groupe Edmond De Rothschild) Groupe Rothschild Gruppo Banca Sella Harbinger Group Hauck &amp; Aufhauser Health Alliance Group Heinz Henderson Group HG Capital Hideal Partners Highland Capital Partners Hines HNA Group Home Credit Group HSBC Hutchison Group Hypo Real Estate Group IAM ICAP Iceberg Qapital IK Investment Partners IKEA Informa Intelsat Intergenia International Flavors &amp; Fragrances Intesa Sanpaolo Group Investcorp / Barclays IVG Immobilien J Chahine Capital J.C. Flowers Jardine Matheson Group JER Partners Jones Lang Lasalle J.P. Morgan Julius Baer Group Kaupthing Bank (now Arion Banki) KBL Lombard International Assurance King Street Capital Management Knight Business Kohler Landesbank Baden-Württemberg Langres Investment Limited Lehman Brothers Li Family Trusts Lion Capital Livingstone Brothers Lombard Odier Lubrizol (now Berkshire Hathaway) LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Macquarie Group Mark IV Industries Maus Freres McGraw-Gill Companies Mercapital (now N+1 Group) Merrill Lynch SATPO Group METTLER-TOLEDO Meyer Bergman Millipore Montagu Moorfield Group MYLAN Navistar / Caterpillar New Gulf Engineering Nikko Cordial Securities (now SMBC Nikko Securities) Nippon Sheet Glass Nordic Capital Nordson Northern &amp; Shell Oaktree Capital Management Office Depot Olayan Investments Company Establishment Olympus Capital Asia Pacific Century Group PALA Investments Palamon Capital Partners Paloma Industries Panorama Capital Paul Capital Pepsi Bottling Group Permira Perry Capital Procter &amp; Gamble Prospector Offshore Drilling Providence Equity Partners Prudential Public Sector Pension Investment Board QUAD-C Partners Quilvest Ramius Reckitt Benckiser Reso RMK Timberland Group Rockspring Rosebud Real Estate ROWAN Companies Rubus International Sanpaolo Group (now Intesa Sanpaolo Group) SBERBANK SCHAWK Schroders Ship Trust / Tree Trust Shire Signa SISK Group Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken SOCFIN Société D'administration Et De Gestion Atlantas SAGA Sportfive Group SR Technics Stabilus STAPLES STAR Capital Partners Starwood Capital Sun Capital Swire Group SYKES Enterprises TDR Capital Tele Columbus Tele2 Group Temenos Group TEVA Pharmaceutical Industries The Heesen Family Tiger Global Management Tiger Partners Timberland TINICUM TITAN International TMD Friction Tower 2008 Charitable Trust Towerbrook Capital Partners Trafalgar Overseas Tyco Group UBI Banca UBM Group UBS Unibanco Brazil (now Itaú Unibanco) Unicorn Investment Bank Unicredit Group United America Indemnity (now Global Indemnity) United Technologies Corporation UPLINE Group Value-Call Vastned Offices / Industrial NV Verizon Vermilion Energy Trust Veronis Suhler Stevenson Vers.Werk Der Zahnärztekammer Westf. Lippe Vistec Electronic Beam Lithography Group Vitec Group Vitruvian Partners Viva Group VKGP Vodafone Volkswagen Group VTS Group Warner Chilcott (now Actavis) WE Group Weather Investments Weatherford International Wendel Group WGZ Bank White Mountains Insurance Group Wolseley Wynnchurch Capital X-rite Yamana Gold York Capital Management

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