Berkshire Hathaway now has more cash than ever before. The company’s cash pile grew to $381.7 billion in the third quarter.
The company sold more shares than it bought for the twelfth quarter in a row, and it did not buy back any of its own stock.
Chairman Warren Buffett says the company is being careful, so it is letting the cash build up instead of making big moves.
Buffett is 95 years old and will step down as chief executive at the end of the year.
Greg Abel, who is 63, will take over the job.
Abel is known as a hands-on manager. Some investors think he might use the cash to pay a dividend, something Berkshire has not done since 1967.
Operating profit rose 34 percent to $13.49 billion compared with the same time last year.
Net income, which includes gains or losses on stocks, climbed 17 percent to $30.8 billion.
Buffett says net income can swing sharply, so he prefers to look at operating profit to judge the company.
Since Buffett announced his plan to retire on May 3, Berkshire’s share price has fallen 12 percent and has lagged the S&P 500 index.
For 2025 so far, the stock is 11 percentage points behind the index.
In early October Berkshire agreed to spend $9.7 billion on OxyChem, a chemicals unit of Occidental Petroleum. Investors will watch closely to see what comes next.
Today, the company owns about 200 businesses, from Dairy Queen ice-cream shops to large power plants.