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(Kitco News) After making a lot of noise this summer with the purchase of Barrick Gold (NYSE: GOLD), Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has dumped the stock in its entirety, according to the latest 13F filing.
The move to the sale of Barrick Gold took place in the fourth quarter following the purchase of just under 21 million shares in the second quarter of 2020. Berkshire Hathaway sold part of its Barrick position in the third quarter.
Berkshire’s original purchase of Barrick came as a surprise to many, as Buffett is known for his negative opinion of gold.
In a speech at Harvard in 1998, Buffett said gold “is of no use.”
“(Gold) is dug out of the ground in Africa, or somewhere else. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again, and pay people to guard it. It’s no use. Anyone looking from Mars would scratch their heads, ”he said.
Buffett’s summer purchase coincided with gold hitting new all-time highs of over $ 2,065 an ounce and figures like Max Keizer, host of the Keizer report, announcing the move to buy Barrick as a “sea change.”
Buffett dumps; Buying Barrick Gold is a big change
Its importance cannot be stressed enough
He sees that the global central banks have completely lost control; they print billions and kill fiat money
The entire $ 100 trillion global funds have just been turned upside down https://t.co/YbFlo1luRT
– Max Keizer (@maxkeiser) August 14, 2020
And the fourth quarter decision to sell Barrick is in line with other companies downsizing their gold positions as the precious metal is stuck in a downtrend, trading below $ 1,800 an ounce.
So Buffett marked the top in Barrick when he was bought. Now he’s sold out, maybe he’s marking the bottom.
– Mike Barnes aka Cashcosts (@real_MikeBarnes) February 18, 2021
In the second quarter of 2020 Buffett (or $ BRK.B $ BRK.A) bought a very small 0.15% position in Barrick Gold ($ GOLD) at between $ 18.50 and $ 28.25.
It sold ~ 43% of the position between ~ $ 26 and ~ $ 30.50 last quarter and the rest this quarter at prices between ~ $ 22 and ~ $ 29.
Why?
– Tobias Carlisle (@Greenbackd) February 17, 2021
Another 13F filing from BlackRock revealed that the world’s largest asset manager sold more than $ 470 million worth of SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) and bought $ 29 million worth of iShares Silver Trust (SLV).
Barrick Gold was not the only stock to sell Berkshire Hathaway in its entirety. The company has also completely left its positions in Pfizer, JPMorgan Chase, M&T Bank and PNC Financial. In addition, it reduced its stake in Wells Fargo & Co. by 59%.
The company also reduced Apple Inc’s stake by 6% and bought shares in Verizon Communications Inc., insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Cos. And Chevron Corp.
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