Berkshire Hathaway’s Stake in Wells Boosted

Berkshire Hathaway Inc., billionaire Warren Buffett’s investment company, raised its Wells Fargo & Co. stake to 9% of the company in September from 7.7% earlier last year. Berkshire disclosed its stake, worth about $2.43 billion at Monday’s price, in a filing with the SEC in December. The Omaha-based company is the biggest shareholder in Wells, the 10th-largest U.S. bank. Many investors watch Buffett’s every move because he’s had greater success in stocks than almost any U.S. investor. In the last five years, Berkshire Hathaway shares rose more than fourfold. Its Class A stock advanced $1,600 to close at $51,900 a share Monday on the New York Stock Exchange. To be sure, analysts said the Berkshire filing preceded Wells’ announcement of disappointing fourth-quarter earnings last month and the disclosure last week that former Wells Chairman and CEO Carl Reichardt was selling 140,000 shares. San Francisco-based Wells shares rose $8.50 to $317.50 on the NYSE.