SunTrust Shares Tumble After Buffett Divests Stake

SunTrust Banks Inc., holder of the most bailout funds among U.S. regional lenders, saw the biggest drop in its stock price in eight months Tuesday after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. divested its stake in the company.

SunTrust shares fell 6.2%, to $28.03, in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Omaha-based Berkshire reported late Monday that it held no shares in the Atlanta banking company as of March 31. It owned more than 2 million at Dec. 31.

Buffett has touted some of Berkshire's larger banking investments, praising Goldman Sachs Group Inc. at his annual meeting on May 1 and backing Wells Fargo & Co. at last year's session. Berkshire had owned a stake in SunTrust since at least 2005.

David Tepper's Appaloosa Management LP trimmed its holding to about 5.5 million shares, from more than 8 million, according to a separate filing.

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