Berkshire Hathaway
operating profit rose 20% in the third quarter to $7.8 billion after taxes, beating expectations. The profit was helped by increased investment income as the company benefited from the impact of higher short-term interest rates on its $109 billion in cash and cash equivalents.
Berkshire generated a huge profit even though it suffered losses of $3.4 billion before taxes — and $2.7 billion after taxes — from Hurricane Ian. The company is a major property and casualty insurer with ownership of Geico, the No. 2 auto insurance company in the US after State Farm.