Berkshire Hathaway has taken a large stake in UnitedHealthcare.
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. took new positions in UnitedHealthcare Group Inc. and homebuilder D. R. Horton Inc., and went deeper into other homebuilding and home-related companies, according to a filing late Thursday.
Securities regulators require institutional investment managers holding more than $100 million in some securities to periodically disclose their positions in filings known as 13-Fs.
The filings are a snapshot of investments on the final day of the quarter, but offer a window into a firm's possible strategies. And no firm's holdings and strategies are more scrutinized than Berkshire's (BRK.A) (BRK.B).
The fund took a new position on UnitedHealth shares (UNH) worth north of $1.5 billion. UnitedHealth's stock rallied nearly 11% in the extended session Thursday, after ending the regular trading day down a fraction.
UnitedHealth's stock has lost nearly half of its value so far this year. The company found favor with two other major firms.
Buffett's Berkshire also bought nearly $200 million worth of shares of Arlington, Texas-based D. R. Horton (DHI), which recently tweaked its revenue outlook as the housing market remains a question mark for most market observers amid cautious consumers and affordability worries. The stock jumped nearly 4% after hours.
Berkshire seems to have shaken off those concerns, however, as it also increased its position on Lennar Corp. (LEN), the nation's No. 2 homebuilder after D. R. Horton, and Pool Corp. (POOL), a wholesale seller of pool maintenance products. In the case of the latter, it more than doubled its stake.
Another new stake was steel producer and recycler Nucor Corp. (NUE)
The fund also raised its stake in Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ) by 12%. One company, however, found no favor in Omaha: Buffett's firm sold off its T-Mobile US Inc. holdings (TMUS).
-Claudia Assis
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