Billionaire Warren Buffett invests in Domino's Pizza and sends the stock price soaring

The conglomerate of American billionaire Warren Buffett has invested 549 million dollars (521 million euros) in the fast-food chain Domino's Pizza, according to documents communicated to the American stock market watchdog relayed by Reuters on Thursday November 14. Berkshire Hathaway took control of 1.28 million shares of the company, or 3.6% of the shares, causing the price of Domino's Pizza to jump more than 7% after the announcement. The businessman also took a 1% stake in swimming pool equipment distributor Pool Corp, for $152 million, again causing the price to jump by more than 5%.

Berkshire Hathaway had sold its shares in several other companies in recent months, including Apple. Warren Buffett's conglomerate sold a quarter of its shares in the Tech giant during the summer, but still owns nearly $70 billion worth of shares in the Cupertino firm, its largest stake. In recent months, he has also sold shares in Bank of America, falling below 10% of the capital. At the beginning of the fall, thanks to these large sales, Berkshire Hathaway had a mountain of liquidity, with 325 billion dollars.

Guru of modern capitalism

A former textile SME of which Warren Buffett took control in 1965, Berkshire Hathaway has become, through acquisitions, a gigantic conglomerate, which today notably owns the insurer Geico, the railway company Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF), the ready-to-wear brand Fruit of the Loom or Duracell batteries. It is also a major investor, controlling 21% of the capital of American Express, 13% of Bank of America (at the end of June) and 9% of Coca-Cola.

Inspired by his accomplice Charlie Munger, who accompanied him from 1978 until his death in November 2023, Warren Buffett adopted a rational and dispassionate approach to investing, often based on a long-term strategy, going against the tide of the short term. -termism of a number of market players. Their investment philosophy has become a standard, to the point that Warren Buffet is today considered one of the gurus of modern capitalism. Every year, thousands of people come to listen to him take stock of the past financial year and share his thoughts at the Berkshire Hathaway general meeting, in Omaha (Nebraska), his hometown where he still resides.

Between 1965 and 2023, Berkshire Hathaway shares gained 19.8% per year on average and almost 4,400% in total. Which makes the billionaire the sixth richest person in the world, according to a real-time ranking established by the Forbes magazine website. At 94, Warren Buffett is still CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. In 2021, he nevertheless appointed a successor, in the person of Greg Abel, 62, now vice-president of the group.