Berkshire Sells JNJ, PG, & Picks Up Shares in NLC

NLC gets a boost in as Bershire picks up 8.74 million shares

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc reduced stakes in health-care company Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) and consumer products company Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N) as he found high-yielding investments elsewhere, and suffered big paper losses by holding onto investments in big U.S. financial companies.

Berkshire (BRKa.N)(BRKb.N) lowered its stake in Johnson & Johnson 54 percent to 28.6 million shares in the three months ended December 31 and reduced its stake in Procter & Gamble by 9 percent to 96.3 million shares.

It also disclosed a new 8.74 million share stake in water treatment services provider Nalco Holding Co (NLC.N), worth $100.8 million as of December 31. Nalco shares rose 6.7 percent after-hours.

Buffett has deployed at least $11.6 billion in the last five months to buy convertible securities, preferred stock and debt issued by General Electric Co (GE.N), Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N), reinsurer Swiss Re (RUKN.VX), jewelry maker Tiffany & Co (TIF.N) and others, all yielding at least 10 percent.

Berkshire’s portfolio of U.S.-listed equities shrank 26 percent in the quarter to $51.87 billion from $69.89 billion.

But the company held onto 290.2 million shares of Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N), although its value fell 22 percent in the quarter to $8.55 billion, and a 151.6 million share stake in American Express Co (AXP.N), whose value fell 48 percent to $2.81 billion. Berkshire’s stake in U.S. Bancorp (USB.N) fell 7 percent to 67.6 million shares.