Daily Brief - 16 Feb 2024

Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway sold a bunch of Apple stock

Warren Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, sold ten million shares of Apple, reducing their stake by about 1%. Despite this, they still hold a significant 5.9% of Apple, valued at roughly $167 billion. This isn't the first time Buffett has sold Apple shares; he previously mentioned regretting such a decision. Alongside Apple, Berkshire also reduced its investments in HP and Paramount significantly and exited several other companies, including General Motors and UPS. Meanwhile, Buffett seems keen on the oil and gas sector, increasing stakes in Chevron and Occidental Petroleum. This move comes as the world gradually shifts towards cleaner energy options, with a growing demand for liquified natural gas.

Michael Burry isn’t holding it against Chinese tech stocks

While most of the world is wary of Chinese tech stocks, Michael Burry of "The Big Short" fame is taking a different path by increasing his investments in Alibaba and JD.com by 50% and 60%, respectively. He's moving against the tide, showing confidence in these companies even as others step back. Burry has also adjusted his stance on US tech, ending a bet against a fund including Nvidia, and buying into Alphabet and Amazon. Investors get insights into such moves through "13F filings," which reveal the US stock holdings of big investors. Amidst global reluctance towards Chinese stocks due to economic and political uncertainties, Burry's move could be seen as seizing an opportunity to invest while prices are low, echoing Warren Buffett's advice to "be greedy when others are fearful.

Jupiter’s compliance team blocked crypto ETP investment

Jupiter's compliance team stopped the firm from investing in a cryptocurrency exchange-traded product (ETP) in one of its Irish funds, spotlighting the EU's mixed regulatory stance on crypto. While Ireland's rules prevented Jupiter's Gold & Silver fund from keeping its crypto ETP investment, Germany's DWS Fintech fund continues to hold a crypto ETP, highlighting differing approaches within the EU. Despite these variances, the move has not led to regulatory issues for Jupiter, which managed to correct the oversight with minimal financial loss. This incident underlines the ongoing debate and uncertainty surrounding crypto investments in Ucits funds across Europe, with regulators in some countries still wary about allowing crypto exposure for retail investors.