Berkshire Hathaway has exited its investment in Chinese electric vehicle company BYD, after seeing BYD’s share price soar over the past 17 years.
It first bought a 10% stake in BYD in 2008, but had cut this to just under 5% by June 2024 after selling around 76% of its shares. Berkshire said in a filing for its energy subsidiary that it had sold its remaining 415 BYD shares across 2025’s first quarter.
Berkshire has not explained its reasons for the sale. Its BYD purchase was spearheaded by late vice chair Charlie Munger.
“I have never helped do anything at Berkshire that was as good as BYD,” said Munger in 2023.
BYD’s share price rose by around 3890% during the period Berkshire invested in the company. Berkshire purchased its initial stake of 225 million shares for US$230 million.
While BYD’s Hong Kong-listed shares surged to an all-time high of HK$158.76 in May, its share price sank during the first half of September after it reported its first drop in quarterly profit in more than three years.
China’s regulators have urged BYD to halt its aggressive price-cutting strategy in recent months, arguing that price wars could heavily damage the country’s electric vehicle sector.
BYD’s (SEHK: 1211) share price closed at $113.50 on Friday, up from its previous close at $112.80. Its market capitalisation is $1.066 trillion.
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