Buffet boosts BNSF stake to 21.8%

Buffet boosts BNSF stake to 21.8% Billionaire investor Warren Buffett’s firm, Berkshire Hathaway, has completed the purchase of just over 4.3 million shares of Class I rail carrier Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. stock. The sale was listed at just over $271 million.
   Berkshire Hathaway increased its stake in Fort Worth, Texas-based BNSF to more than 74 million shares, and now controls 21.8 percent of the nation’s second-largest railroad. The stock purchase was completed Tuesday, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Berkshire Hathaway's BNSF stock is held by Berkshire Hathaway insurance subsidiary National Indemnity Co.
   BNSF is scheduled to release its fourth-quarter earnings after the markets close on Wednesday.
   According to BNSF officials, the railroad continues to fair well despite the 'significant challenges' being faced by the domestic and international economies.
   Analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial expect BNSF to post fourth quarter revenue of $4.42 billion, up from $4.25 billion in the prior year period.
   In the third quarter, the railroad posted a record-setting quarterly earnings-per-share for the firm, as well as a 31 percent increase in quarterly profit and a 21 percent increase in quarterly freight revenue.