Warren Buffett may still have a record amount of cash on hand, but the Oracle of Omaha is finding ways to spend it. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B)(NYSE: BRK.A) currently holds US$157.2 billion in cash, with the equity portfolio at US$313.3 billion at the end of the third quarter.
This was down from US$348.19 billion at the end of the second quarter, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s data. So, the company did some selling and some buying. After selling $7 billion in stocks from some pretty huge names, the company went on to invest in a few other options. And these three were the ones that investors may want to consider first and foremost.
Liberty Live
Liverty Live Group (NASDAQ: LLYV.K) got a great boost on Wall Street after the purchase by Berkshire Hathaway this year. The stock, owned by Liberty Media, could see a huge boost in share price thanks to the investment, with analysts pegging 68% upside as of writing.
The company represents Live Nation Entertainment, which is the world’s top live entertainment company. However, Berkshire didn’t exactly invest in Live Nation or, indeed, Liberty Live Group’s main stocks, but instead, the two tracking stocks that were spinoffs of Berkshire’s other Liberty Media investments.
Even so, investment into Liberty Live stock is likely to increase after the Buffett buy. For now, shares trade at US$35 per share, up 9% since the purchase.
Sirius XM
It seems as though Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway started focusing on entertainment, with Sirius XM Holdings (NASDAQ: SIRI) another buy for the stock. The purchase comes after a two-year hiatus on the investment, with licensing disputes not keeping the company out of Berkshire’s portfolio.
Yet even with disputes and competition out there, Buffett seems to remain confident about the company’s future. It continues to offer revenue diversity, with both ad revenue and subscriptions contributing to the company’s bottom line.
The stock remains strong, with just 19% of the US$6.67 billion in total sales coming from advertising during the first nine months of 2023. Meanwhile, 77% of that revenue came from subscriptions. And with costs remaining quite fixed, it is a strong buy these days. Shares are down 10% in the last year, jumping 20% after the Buffett buy.
Atlanta Braves Holdings
One of the spinoffs of Liberty Live stock came from former parent company Atlanta Braves Holdings (NASDAQ: BATR.K). Yet here, Berkshire is directly invested in, well, baseball! Atlanta Braves is one of the few baseball teams to announce their financial data, and Buffett has, therefore, not shied away from investing in the team recently.
An avid baseball fan, Buffett wasn’t directly linked to baseball until this investment. While it seems to be more of a personal one, however, there is always a strong financial decision for his buys. It could be that the team led in wins last year and could succeed this year as well. That certainly would bring in more consumer interest, leading to higher sales.
Shares are now up 13% in the last year, rising 14% after the buy.
Bottom line
Should these stocks be on your buy list? Absolutely! Just make sure to balance them out with perhaps some related Canadian stocks or even exchange-traded funds that include these companies. For now, keep your eye on Buffett, as the new year promises to bring a rebound in quite a few companies.
