Weekly Real Estate News
Summary
Berkshire Hathaway disclosed $53.88 million of additional Lennar purchases covering 660,410 Class A and Class B shares from Sept. 28 through Sept. 30. The latest Form 4 shows Berkshire-affiliated subsidiaries holding 26,034,436 Class A shares and 553,000 Class B shares after the transactions.
Berkshire Hathaway has bought another $53.9 million of Lennar stock, extending an accumulation campaign that has made Warren Buffett’s conglomerate a reportable 10% owner of one of the nation’s largest homebuilders.
In a Form 4 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Berkshire and Warren Buffett disclosed purchases totaling 660,410 Lennar shares from Sept. 28 through Sept. 30. Based on the weighted-average prices reported in the filing, the transactions totaled approximately $53.88 million.
The largest trade came Sept. 30, when Berkshire-affiliated entities bought 638,813 Class A shares at a weighted-average price of $81.59, a purchase worth roughly $52.1 million. They also bought 4,008 Class B shares that day at a weighted-average $79.98.
Smaller purchases included 5,200 Class A shares on Sept. 28 at a weighted-average $81.96 and 12,289 Class A shares on Sept. 29 at $81.95, plus 100 Class B shares at $80.
The filing reports that Berkshire-affiliated subsidiaries held 26,034,436 Lennar Class A shares and 553,000 Class B shares after the transactions.
Berkshire keeps adding after crossing the 10% threshold
The latest purchases extend a position that has grown quickly. WRE News reported Sept. 22 that Berkshire had purchased about $212.4 million of additional Lennar stock over three trading days and crossed the 10% ownership reporting threshold. At the end of that buying period, the filing showed 23,719,109 Class A shares and 528,217 Class B shares.
Berkshire continued buying after that disclosure. A subsequent SEC filing showed the Class A position had already reached 25,378,134 shares before the Sept. 28-30 transactions covered by the newest report.
That distinction matters. The $53.88 million figure represents only the five purchases reported for Sept. 28 through Sept. 30; it should not be treated as the entire increase in Berkshire’s Lennar position since WRE’s Sept. 22 report.
The filing shows purchases, not Berkshire’s strategy
The buying is notable because Berkshire is continuing to put capital into a major homebuilder while the housing market remains constrained by affordability and financing costs. But the Form 4 does not explain why Berkshire is increasing its Lennar stake, whether it intends to continue buying or whether the investment signals any broader transaction involving the builder.
The shares are held indirectly through Berkshire subsidiaries. The latest filing identifies AZGUARD Insurance Company, BHG Life Insurance Company, Medical Protective Company, National Indemnity Company, NorGUARD Insurance Company and WestGUARD Insurance Company as holders of the Class A shares. AZGUARD and National Indemnity hold the reported Class B position.
The filing also states that Buffett, as Berkshire’s controlling stockholder, may be deemed to beneficially own the securities only to the extent of his pecuniary interest and that he disclaims beneficial ownership beyond that interest.
Berkshire’s move above the 10% threshold is also why the market is getting a much faster look at these transactions. Section 16 reporting requirements require qualifying insiders and 10% owners to report changes in beneficial ownership on Form 4, making subsequent purchases visible within days rather than waiting for Berkshire’s quarterly institutional holdings disclosure.
The latest filing therefore establishes one thing clearly: Berkshire’s accumulation of Lennar did not end with the buying spree WRE reported in September. Through Sept. 30, the company was still adding shares.
