Roughly 35,000 descended upon the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska, Saturday morning for Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholders meeting, where the the spry octogenarian entertained the crowd and delivered a live report on the company. As is customary, CEO Warren Buffett opened the day with a movie. This year it focused on his secretary Debbie Bosanek. You know, the one who pays at a higher tax rate than her boss.
Before settling into a six-hour question and answer session alongside vice-chairman Charlie Munger, Buffett roamed the exhibition floor, visiting booths showcasing Berkshire’s various companies. At the Justin Boots booth, Buffett sang with the Nebraska Huskers cheerleaders. Bill Gates also made an appearance and competed with Buffett — once a paperboy — in a newspaper throwing competition. Buffett won.
“On Friday, the company said first-quarter net profit doubled from a year ago to $3.25 billion,” reports The Wall Street Journal, “aided by the recent stock-market rally, an improving economy and fewer natural disasters.”
Buffett brushed off his recent statement that he had been diagnosed with stage-one prostate cancer. “I feel terrific. I love what I do, I work with people I love, it’s more fun everyday,” he said. “My secretary was getting more attention that I was, so I threw the spotlight back on me. Seriously, it is a non-event.”
The Oracle also announced earlier this year that the company had selected his successor but didn’t name that individual. Despite calls for a reveal, he has not done so at the meeting, at least not yet.
