Berkshire appears to have met SEC request
Warren E. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., which had been asked by the Securities and Exchange Commission to do a better job disclosing the risks in its businesses, appears to have satisfied the agency’s concerns.
Examiners expressed concern in an April 19 letter and subsequent discussions that Berkshire’s disclosures in its 2005 annual report related to its insurance and reinsurance units “could be improved,” filings posted by the SEC on Monday show.
Buffett, the world’s second-richest person according to Forbes magazine, has long advocated improved disclosure and corporate governance in plain-spoken terms.
After several communications and additional disclosures by Berkshire, Joseph Roesler, an SEC accounting branch chief, wrote on Sept. 29 that examiners had completed their review “and have no further comments at this time.”
SEC spokesman John Nester said the agency would not comment on filings. Debbie Bosanek, Buffett’s assistant, declined to comment. Berkshire Chief Financial Officer Marc Hamburg was not immediately available to comment.
According to Monday’s filings, the SEC had asked Omaha-based Berkshire to improve disclosures related to reserves for losses in auto insurance, property and casualty insurance and reinsurance.
It also asked Berkshire to explain how its accounting at its Geico Corp. auto insurance unit complied with applicable standards and why Berkshire adjusted some data related to insurance losses.
Berkshire operates about 50 companies, but it is best known for its insurance and reinsurance operations and for assuming some risks that companies with weaker balance sheets might not.
Last year Berkshire suffered about $3 billion in losses related to hurricanes, including Katrina and Rita. An absence of major catastrophes in the third quarter helped Berkshire more than quadruple quarterly profit from a year earlier.
Berkshire’s Class A shares fell $1,310, or 1.2%, to $106,300 on Monday. They began the year at $88,620 and reached a record high of $108,800 on Nov. 9.
