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GEICO Insurance

GEICO Expands Availability of Ridesharing Coverage to Pennsylvania drivers

(BRK.A), (BRK.B)

Recognizing the growing popularity of ridesharing, which has seen Uber go from zero revenue in 2009 to over $10 billion today, and the proliferation of a host of competitors, including Lyft, Sidecar, and Carma, automobile insurer GEICO is continuing to expand the availability of its ridesharing insurance coverage.

Real-time ridesharing that uses an automated system to match drivers and riders has in a few short years moved from a fringe mode of transportation to a powerful alternative that has taxi and car services up in arms. Along the way, it has required new forms of liability coverage that are different than those offered to both personal and commercial drives.

GEICO first entered the market in February in Virginia, and has been selling a ridesharing product in Georgia, Virginia, Maryland and Texas, and is now expanding its ridesharing offering to drivers in Pennsylvania.

Replaces the Personal Auto Policy

GEICO’s ridesharing product replaces the driver’s personal auto policy and provides coverage both for personal and ridesharing use.

The coverage is billed as a Hybrid Policy that regardless of whether the driver is driving for personal needs, or is picking up a paid rider, provides coverage for liability, property damage, bodily injury, first party coverage, collision coverage, comprehensive physical damage coverage, and medical payments.

New and existing drivers that have been approved to drive for Uber (UberX and UberXL), Lyft, Sidecar and other services in Pennsylvania can now get the insurance coverage.

“With the rapid growth of ridesharing and Transportation Network Companies in Pennsylvania, we are excited to introduce a product that is specifically designed to meet the needs of ridesharing consumers,” said Nancy Pierce, GEICO regional vice president. “Our product offers customers a complete insurance solution at an affordable price along with the outstanding customer service they can expect from GEICO.”

“Rideshare drivers have unique insurance needs that go well beyond a traditional auto insurance policy,” said Othello Powell, director of GEICO commercial lines. “We created this product as a low-cost solution that covers both personal and ridesharing use and other on-demand services.”

GEICO says it will offer the coverage through GEICO Commercial at a price significantly lower than taxi and commercial rates.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance

BHSI Begins Underwriting Marine Insurance in Australia and New Zealand

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As Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company (BHSI) continues to expand in Australia and New Zealand, the company has announced that it has begun underwriting Marine Insurance in both countries.

The addition of marine coverage further rounds out BHSI’s offerings in Australasia. The company recently launched property, casualty, executive & professional and healthcare lines in Australia, as well as property, casualty and financial lines in New Zealand.

BHSI appointed Dimitry Zilberud as Head of Marine, and Mark Dixon as Marine Manager.

Through its local offices in Auckland, Sydney and Melbourne, BHSI now offers Marine Cargo (Ocean and Inland), Cargo Stock Throughput (STP), Carrier Goods in Transit, Carriers Liability, and Marine Project Cargo coverage.

“We are taking a flexible approach to marine risks, and are pleased to have Dimitry and Mark aboard to provide tailored solutions for customers and brokers navigating these exposures,” said Chris Colahan, President, Australasia Region, BHSI.

Dimitry Zilberud has nearly two decades of marine underwriting experience. Dimitry was most recently the Marine Underwriting Manager, Australasia at HDI-Gerling. Before that, he served as Marine Underwriting Manager, NSW/QLD, for ACE Insurance and was the Business Development Manager at WE COX London UK.

Mark Dixon was most recently Northern Region Marine Underwriting Manager and Senior Marine Underwriter, at HDI-Gerling. Mark has also held various Marine and Distribution positions for both Brokers and Insurers, and a graduate of the Royal Australian Naval College (RANC).

Zilberud and Dixon are both based in BHSI’s office in Sydney.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Marmon Group Special Report

Special Report: Breakthrough Aims to Change the Way You Drink Milk

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Go into any quick service restaurant and you will find machines dispensing soda and noncarbonated beverages, such as lemonade or fruit punch, but don’t expect them to be dispensing milk. The problem is that milk ships in bulky cartons, must be kept refrigerated, and has a limited shelf-life. It’s a problem that has vexed dairy producers and retailers alike.

That’s All About to Change

Cornelius, Inc. and Dairyvative Technologies, a Wisconsin-based developer of a patented process that allows pasteurized milk to be concentrated to a liquid that has one seventh of its original volume, are looking to change the way milk is shipped, stored, and dispensed.

Cornelius has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Dairyvative that makes Cornelius the exclusive provider of equipment to hold and dispense the concentrated milk provided by dairies using Dairyvative’s patented SEVENx technology.

One of the newest members of the Berkshire Hathaway family, Cornelius was acquired for $1.1 billion on January 2, 2014, by Berkshire’s wholly owned Marmon Group.

With 4,500 employees, and manufacturing facilities in seven countries, spanning North America, Europe, and China, Cornelius provides beverage dispensing technology to leading food service and retail companies, including PepsiCo, Coca Cola, McDonald’s, Yum, Starbucks, and Burger King.

All of these companies and more are potential customers for Dairyvative’s new technology.

A Whole New Way to Store Milk

Dairyvative claims its SEVENx technology “allows pasteurized milk to be concentrated to a liquid that has one seventh of its original volume. The lactose-free end product is shelf-stable without refrigeration for up to 6 months. The process also keeps milk proteins intact, maintaining nutrient and flavor profiles.”

Unlike milk treated with Ultra-high temperature processing (UHT), SEVENx technology has relatively minimal thermal treatment by comparison.

“I have been working on this process for 28 years,” said Dr. Charles E. Sizer, founder and CEO of Dairyvative Technologies. “There have been a lot of hurdles in maintaining the functionality and freshness of the product.”

One of the first markets for the SEVENx technology will be in quick service restaurants, where using Cornelius’s dispensing technology, the new dispenser will allow individual consumers the choice of adding several different flavors to the milk. Cornelius’ technology also enables the milk to be carbonated during dispensing.

Looking for a World Leader

“We knew Cornelius is the leader in dispensing products, so we approached them and signed an exclusive deal,” Dr. Sizer explained.

While Dairyvative touts the concentrated milk as having the “natural fresh taste of milk,” it does note that it is slightly sweeter due to the conversion of lactose into the sugars glucose and galactose.

Dairyvative also says that the cost for dairy processors to produce the concentrated milk is low, as much of the equipment that processors need they already have in place. They also note that the long shelf-life means less spoilage and returns, lower transportation costs, and environmental benefits such as less electricity needed for milk storage.

Reducing the Carbon Footprint

Reducing the carbon footprint is very important to Dr. Sizer. He notes that currently it takes 2.05 kilos of carbon to bring 1 kilo (1 liter) of milk to the consumer.

“We can reduce that by 20%-30% right out of the gate,” Dr. Sizer said. “And by locating in close proximity to the dairy, we can reduce it even further.”

Expect to see the U.S. rollout of the new milk product in 2016, and Dairyvative is already in discussion with multi-national dairies for international markets.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Kraft Heinz Minority Stock Positions

Kraft Experiences 3G’s Heinz Hatchet

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Now that Kraft is part of Kraft Heinz, the aggressive cost cutting that 3G Capital brought to Heinz has come to Kraft as well. Gone are the days of a host of perks, including a free supply of Kraft snack foods for employees, or even minifridges in the office.

It’s no surprise, as 3G is known for imposing cost controls big and small that include cuts to travel expenses, limits on the number of printer copies that can be made each month, the elimination of snacks in break rooms, and new mandates on cutting electricity usage.

The same goes for personnel, and 3G has already begun trimming and replacing employees, including the departure of Kraft’s Chief Financial Officer James Kehoe.

What Do Warren and Charlie Think?

While 3G’s ruthless cost-cutting has dismayed some Berkshire shareholders, it has not offended either Warren Buffett or Charlie Munger, who see it as necessary to keep complacent, century-old companies competitive in the modern world. After all, layoffs were in Berkshire Hathaway from the start, as Buffett fought to keep the failing textile company afloat.

At the 2015 Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting both Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger strongly supported 3G’s strategy.

“3G has been buying businesses that have too many people,” Buffett explained. “You will have never found a statement from Charlie or me saying that a business should have more people than needed,” Buffett added.

The cost cutting has also pleased Wall Street, as shares of Kraft Heinz (KHC) are already up roughly 9% since their trading debut on July 7.

Berkshire’s move to partner with 3G, which combined own 51% of Kraft Heinz, with Berkshire the largest single shareholder at 26%, has been a very profitable way for Berkshire to put its mountain of cash to use. Andrew Bary of Barron’s calculated that Berkshire’s $9.25 billion investment in Heinz and Kraft are now worth $16 billion. He called it “a stunning profit in just two years.”

With 3G also having turned to Berkshire for cash to finance its Burger King takeover of Tim Hortons, a move that has gave Berkshire 8% of the combined company, it looks like Buffett’s and Munger’s interest in 3G’s management style is growing not waning.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Minority Stock Positions

BYD a Willing Partner

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Berkshire Hathaway’s roughly 10% ownership in BYD Company Limited, the Chinese automobile and new energy company that is the largest supplier of rechargeable batteries in the world, makes the company especially worth watching for Berkshire shareholders.

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway placed a major bet on BYD’s potential when it purchased 225 million shares, and the company has not disappointed as it has aggressively moved into new markets.

A Willing Partner

While Tesla has mostly gone it alone, BYD not only manufactures its own line of cars and buses, but it is willing to form manufacturing partnerships that give it entry into new markets.

The key is BYD’s electric vehicle technology that makes it an excellent partner for other manufacturers looking to meet ambitious climate change and pollution goals.

On July 27, 2015, BYD announced a joint project worth $29.6 million deal with British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis Limited to build 51 single-deck zero-emission buses for London. The buses will utilize BYD’s chassis and electric drivetrain with the bodies supplied by ADL. The partnership helps London move towards its goal of having all single-deck buses totally emission-free by 2020.

“This combination will deliver a unique vehicle which we believe will have a strong appeal in London and elsewhere in the UK,” said Isbrand Ho, the managing director of BYD Europe.

The buses will run on two routes served by London bus operator Go-Ahead London, and are scheduled to be in service by August 2016.

“Working together with our partners and friends at ADL we can provide a truly optimized blend of expertise. Our deep experience of not only battery technology but the critical battery management systems and driveline components necessary to deliver unequaled range and reliability are matched to ADL’s strong track record in building low weight, attractive and durable buses,” Ho said.

“We are delighted to have placed this order with BYD and have every confidence that along with ADL. They will deliver the world’s most advanced, zero-emission, pure electric bus fleet, and one that will match the rigorous demands of the London operating environment. This is a considerable step towards a cleaner, greener London bus fleet,” noted Richard Harrington, engineering director of Go-Ahead London.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Todd Combs and Ted Weschler

Berkshire’s AT&T Stake Echoes P&G Deal

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With AT&T’s acquisition of DirecTV now completed, Berkshire finds itself a major shareholder in AT&T at a price far more favorable than if it had originally gone out and bought AT&T stock.

At the time that AT&T announced the $48.5 billion acquisition of DirecTV, Berkshire  owned 34.5 million shares of DirecTV. Those shares were purchased at roughly half the tender price of $95 per share that was offered by AT&T.

At the $95 share price, Berkshire’s holdings were worth at least $3.27 billion, provided that it did not accumulate any additional shares after March 31, 2014.

After the merger, each DirecTV share has converted to 1.892 shares of AT&T common stock and $28.50 in cash. Berkshire has ended up with 59.4 million shares of AT&T with a value of roughly $2 billion, and also received roughly $900 million in cash.

Todd Combs and Ted Weschler Pick a Winner

Berkshire’s DirecTV stake was purchased by Todd Combs and Ted Weschler, as a part of portfolios they manage on behalf of the company.

Combs and Weschler each manage $7 billion portfolios, and have seen the amount of money under their supervision increased significantly in the past two years as Warren Buffett has grown more confident in their approaches.

The Future of Berkshire’s AT&T Stake

Berkshire has not announced any plans for its AT&T stake, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it held on to it long-term. Berkshire has a history of sitting on its stock positions and letting the dividends pour in. Currently, AT&T pays $1.88 annually for a return of 5.5% based on a share price around $34. However, with Berkshire’s cost basis less than half of that share price its yield is effectively 11%.

The deal is reminiscent of Berkshire’s $600 million investment in Gillette, which through a merger eventually became a $4.7 billion stake in Procter & Gamble.

Berkshire recently liquidated its stake in P&G by swapping P&G stock for the company’s  Duracell battery division, which was also recapitalized with $1.7 billion in cash.

The move helped Berkshire avoid the large capital gains tax that would have been due if it had simply sold its P&G shares, and brought the world-leader in batteries under its corporate umbrella.

Who knows what the future holds for its AT&T stake?

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

 

Categories
Berkshire Hathaway Energy

Greg Abel Represents Berkshire at White House Climate Change Meeting

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It’s no surprise when Warren Buffett attends a meeting at the White House, but it was not Buffett who was there this past Monday, it was Greg Abel, who heads up Berkshire Hathaway Energy, and is also rumored to be the leading candidate as Buffett’s successor.

On July 27, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and some of the largest companies in the nation gathered at the White House to officially launch the American Business Act on Climate Pledge, a demonstration of the U.S. private sector’s commitment to taking on the global challenge of climate change.

Greg Abel, who serves as the chairman, president and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, and Cathy Woollums, senior vice president, environmental services and chief environmental counsel, attended the meeting, which was led by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

Other companies that sent representatives included Alcoa, Apple, Bank of America, Cargill, Coca-Cola, General Motors, Goldman Sachs, Google, Microsoft, Pepsi, UPS and Walmart.

Through participation in the meeting, U.S. business leaders voiced their support for a strong outcome in the international climate negotiations taking place in Paris this December. Participating companies pledged to take specific, quantifiable steps to reduce emissions, increase low-carbon investments, use and build more clean energy, and deploy cleaner vehicles, among other actions.

“As a provider of essential energy services, our customers depend on us to power their lives and livelihoods,” said Abel. “And we know that they expect us to do that in a way that respects the environment we share. For more than a decade, we have been making significant investments to reduce the impact of our operations on the environment and fostering a more sustainable future by developing renewable energy generation and reducing emissions from our facilities. Joining these other U.S. businesses is one more way we can demonstrate our commitment to lead on climate action.”

Berkshire’s Renewable Energy Commitment

Berkshire Hathaway Energy has already invested more than $15 billion in renewable energy generation projects that are under construction and in operation through 2014, and has pledged to invest up to an additional $15 billion going forward.

In May, BHE announced a 400-megawatt wind farm that will be located about 12 miles northeast of O’Neill, Nebraska, and will begin construction this summer. The completion date will be in 2016. The new wind farm will be the largest in the state and will increase Nebraska’s wind energy capacity by nearly 50 percent.

Berkshire Hathaway Energy owns a portfolio of businesses that provide electric and natural gas services to more than 11.5 million customers and end-users worldwide. Its family of businesses includes U.S. utilities MidAmerican Energy Company, NV Energy, Pacific Power and Rocky Mountain Power, as well as interstate natural gas pipeline, electric transmission and renewable energy businesses, and distribution networks in the United Kingdom.

“U.S. utilities have been transitioning to a cleaner generating fleet for years, resulting in a 15 percent reduction of carbon dioxide emissions below 2005 levels,” Abel said. “Berkshire Hathaway Energy is leading by example. We have long supported and made investments to advance climate-friendly solutions that move us forward toward a low-carbon, sustainable future.”

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Marmon Group UTLX

New Tank Car Standards Means New Facility and Employees for UTLX

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Berkshire Hathaway’s wholly-owned tank car manufacturer UTLX is opening a new facility in Marion, Ohio, and will be adding 200 new employees over the next three years. The expansion will double the number of employees it has in Marion.

The move comes as new federal safety standards have created unprecedented demand for new and retrofitted tank cars.

Retrofitting the Existing Fleet

Under the Enhanced Standards for New and Existing Tank Cars for use in an HHFT— Existing tank cars must be retrofitted in accordance with the DOT-prescribed retrofit design or performance standard for use in an HHFT.

An HHFT is defined as a train carrying 20 or more tank carloads of flammable liquids (including crude oil and ethanol).

The need for replacement and retrofitted tank cars impacts shippers that ship by rail, including shippers of LPG, oil producers and refiners, and ethanol producers that own their own tank cars or lease them from leasing companies, and Berkshire’s BNSF Railway’s own fleet of tank cars.

Retrofitting existing tank cars is an important bridge to safer shipping of flammable liquids, as the current backlog of new tank car orders sits at a record 52,000 units. 

The new facility is be able to rewrap 60 tank cars a week when it reaches full capacity.

 A Bundle of Tax Credits and Grants

The Ohio Tax Credit Authority granted a 55-percent, 5-year tax credit to UTLX for the creation of $8,272,000 in new annual payroll, provided that the company maintains operations at the facility for 11 years.

The company will also receive a $75,000 grant from the Ohio Rail Development Commission to cover the cost of on-site rail improvements.

Greg Cieslak, president of UTLX, noted, “We have a quick need to expand into a second facility due to the industry’s changing landscape, and found the Columbus Region to be a strategic location to grow. The area offers access to the right workforce and real estate to fit our needs, and the Midwest location and rail infrastructure are convenient to our customers.”

Higher Paying Job Opportunities

The new employees will earn between $15 to $21 per hour plus benefits. The jobs include welders and fabricators, tank car repairers, rail car switchmen, material handlers, and general labor and helpers with general welding knowledge.

UTLX is looking to the Tri-Rivers Career Center’s workforce development program to provide training for the new employees.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Acquisitions Commentary Marmon Group

Commentary: Is Now the Time for Berkshire to Pull the Trigger on USG?

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With demand for housing finally outstripping supply in a number of markets, the need for drywall and other construction supplies looks finally to be reviving from the lingering doldrums of the Great Recession.

Building permits for new houses rose a stellar 30-percent in June 2015, as compared to the same time period in 2014.

The rise in new housing starts, which are up 26-percent year-to-year, is certainly welcome news for Berkshire Hathaway’s Johns Manville, which makes insulation and roofing products, and it’s good news for many of Berkshire’s Marmon Group companies that manufacture materials used in both commercial and residential construction.

The revival in new housing is also great news for USG Corporation (formerly known as United States Gypsum Corporation), which is North America’s leading manufacturer of drywall and related building products.

About USG

In 1902, 30 independent gypsum rock and plaster manufacturing companies merged to form the United States Gypsum Company.  Over more than a century, USG has been issued 1,100 patents for its products. In addition to drywall, the company is a leading manufacturer of acoustical panel and specialty ceiling systems. The company has 34 manufacturing plants in the U.S., and has roughly 9,000 employees in more than 30 countries.

USG and Berkshire

Berkshire played a key role in saving USG during the nadir of the Great Recession.

In 2008, with the housing market imploding and lending all but frozen, Berkshire came to USG’s rescue with $300 million of convertible notes that paid Berkshire 10-percent interest.

At the time, the boost in confidence the company received from Warren Buffett’s financing helped the company avoid bankruptcy. The day of transaction the stock soared 22-percent to $6.89 a share.

Today, the stock is hovering around $29 per share.

Berkshire has not only profited from the healthy interest payments, but the stock’s appreciation as well.

In December 2013, Berkshire exchanged $243.8 million of the convertible notes for common stock, and with additional purchases its stake in USG now sits at just under 40-percent.

The Chinese Drywall Scandal

As an American manufacturer, USG has been a beneficiary of the Chinese drywall scandal that came to a head in 2009. Imported drywall from China that had high sulfur content brought reports of fumes that created upper respiratory problems, and the market for drywall from China was hit hard. Thousands of homes in Florida and other states had their drywall ripped out and replaced.

Time to Pull the Trigger?

The Chicago-based company has seen its ups and downs, including three bankruptcies.

The last bankruptcy was in July 25, 2001 under Chapter 11 in order to deal with a mountain of asbestos litigation costs related to asbestos containing joint compounds.

The establishment of the The United States Gypsum Asbestos Personal Injury Settlement Trust put the company’s asbestos woes in the rear-view mirror, and its stock price reflects it. With the growing strength in the new housing market, its roughly $29 share price looks poised to move past the 5-year high of $35.33 that it hit in February 2014.

With a Market Cap of just over $4.2 billion ($1.5 billion of which is already owned by Berkshire), USG is a great fit for Berkshire if it wants to gobble up the whole thing, or if it just wants to continue its incremental takeover by moving to over 50-percent ownership.

USG would fit nicely into the Marmon Group of companies, which include a host of companies that supply the construction industry.

Berkshire might want to consider a tender offer for the company’s outstanding stock, because it just looks to get more expensive from here, as the housing market finally has put the drywall business back in high demand.

All it takes is a little cash, which is something Berkshire’s got a lot of.

© 2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Categories
Duracell

Berkshire Wins EU Approval for Duracell Acquisition

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Berkshire Hathaway has gained approval from the European Commission for its acquisition of battery-maker Duracell from Procter & Gamble.

In a statement released by the Commission:

“The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would not raise competition concerns given the absence of horizontal overlaps and the existence of numerous competitors in the vertically related market where the parties are active. The transaction was examined under the normal merger review procedure.”

About Duracell

With Duracell’s $2 billion in annual revenue, Berkshire is acquiring the market leader in batteries for the home and workplace. The company has highly recognizable brands that consumers in home and work settings are willing to pay more for than private label store brands. According to the company, Duracell’s CopperTop® and Quantum® command the highest average percent of spend among battery brands with 33% and 16%, respectively.

Combined, the two product lines account for close to 50% of the market.

For a look at what type of company Berkshire is getting read this special report.

©2015 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.