Berkshire Hathaway to repurchase stock

U.S. investment firm Berkshire Hathaway Monday said it was taking its own medicine with a board-authorized stock repurchase program. The firm said it had authorization to reduce its cash holdings to $20 billion, but spend no more than that. It would repurchase Class A and Class B shares at no more than a 10 percent premium over the the current book value of the shares. "In the opinion of our board and management, the underlying business of Berkshire are worth considerably more than this amount, though any such estimate is necessarily imprecise," the firm said in a statement. The repurching is potentially valued at $23 billion, as the firm reported in June it had $43 billion in cash, The New York Times reported. Earlier, in February, the firm's fonder Warren Buffett wrote, concerning the $43 billion war chest, "Our elephant gun has been loaded, and my trigger finger is itchy." In August, Buffett fired his so-called elephant gun, investing $5 billion in Bank of America. By aiming the gun at itself, "if we are correct in our opinion, repurchases will enhance the pre-share intrinsic value of Berkshire shares, benefiting shareholders who retain their interest," the firm said.