Buffett sells more BofA shares after buybacks push his stake back above 10%

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Warren Buffett sold another slug of Bank of America stock after the lender repurchased enough of its own shares to nudge his stake back above 10% — a regulatory threshold that requires rapid disclosure.

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reaped about $370 million selling stock this week, according to a filing Thursday detailing his 16th round of disposals since mid-July. That trimmed Berkshire's stake in the second-biggest U.S. bank to 9.97%.

Buffett's earlier rounds of selling had already cut the holding to less than 10% of the Bank of America shares known to be in circulation before the lender said Tuesday that it had repurchased $3.5 billion of stock during the third quarter. The bank's updated figure meant Berkshire was back above that key regulatory threshold.

U.S. rules require investors with more than 10% of a stock to disclose trades within a few days. The latest filing may let Buffett provide updates quarterly, potentially leaving fellow shareholders in the dark for months if he sells further.

Buffett, 94, hasn't commented on why he's pulling back from the investment, which had long lent his imprimatur to Bank of America Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan. Berkshire plowed $5 billion into the bank in 2011. In 2019, it applied for Federal Reserve approval to boost the holding beyond 10%.

Thursday's regulatory filing shows Berkshire remains Bank of America's largest shareholder with a stake worth about $32.6 billion based on the day's closing price. In addition, Bank of America remains one of Berkshire Hathaway's top holdings even after the share sales.