(Bloomberg) — Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said this month it was selling a third stake in Bank of America Corp., shedding a total of more than $3 billion of its huge and profitable investment in the bank.
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The conglomerate, which began investing in Berkshire in 2011 and has long been its largest shareholder, sold $767 million worth of stock between July 25 and 29, according to a regulatory filing on Monday. That sale, along with an earlier one this month, reduced its Berkshire holdings by a combined 6.9%.
Still, Berkshire holds nearly 962 million shares, worth $39.5 billion at Monday’s closing price, according to the filing.
The sale marks Mr. Buffett’s biggest retreat yet from a bet that has long served as a vote of confidence in Bank of America Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan’s management. The legendary 93-year-old investor is selling after the stock has risen 22% this year.
Representatives for Berkshire and Bank of America did not respond to messages seeking comment outside regular business hours.
Buffett’s original $5 billion investment in Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America came at a time of trouble: The company was facing mounting legal liabilities after the 2008 financial crisis and shareholders were worried about hits to its capital.
Buffett has said he was in a tight spot when he came up with the idea to step in to acquire preferred and common stock. His approval calmed public doubts, sent the stock price soaring quickly and generated a huge book profit.
Berkshire continued to invest in Bank of America over the next decade, eventually seeking regulatory approval to own more than 10% of the stock. Last year, Buffett pared down his investments in the financial industry and exited some, but he said Bank of America was one he wanted to keep.
“I love Brian Moynihan a lot,” he said in April. “I just don’t want to sell it.”
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