Berkshire Hathaway Inc., run by billionaire Warren Buffett, may have suffered a $10.4 billion decline in its U.S. stock holdings last week, led by the plunging value of Coca-Cola Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.

Berkshire's portfolio fell about 17 percent, compared with the 18 percent slump in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index. Soft- drink maker Coca-Cola, Berkshire's top equity investment, lost 21 percent. Wells Fargo, which will become the bank with the most U.S. branches through a deal to buy Wachovia Corp., slipped 18 percent. The two holdings declined by a total of about $4 billion, based on positions disclosed in a regulatory filing.
Not even Buffett, the world's preeminent stock picker, could avoid losses as markets around the world tumbled amid concern the financial crisis will drag the economy into a recession. The S&P 500 had its worst week since 1933, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed below 8,500 for the first time since 2003.
``It was an historic week full of fear and anxiety,'' said Michael Yoshikami, the president of YCMNet Advisors in Walnut Creek, California, which manages $1 billion, including Berkshire shares. ``Everything is getting hit, even Berkshire's equity positions and its share price.''
Berkshire fell 18 percent to $113,100 in the week, reducing Buffett's wealth by more than $10 billion. He owns about one third of the A shares in Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire. Berkshire's holdings as of June 30 were disclosed in a filing in August.
Investments as of Sept. 30 don't have to be disclosed until next month, making exact calculations impossible.
Buffett has said he views market declines as opportunities to invest, and is known for picking undervalued companies with durable advantages over competitors. He's been making deals that illustrate those principals the past two months while potential rivals have been unable to act because of a global credit freeze.
Berkshire's MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. agreed to buy Constellation Energy Group Inc. for $4.7 billion, or $26.50 a share, on Sept. 18. Until the week Buffett made the deal, Constellation hadn't traded at a price that low since March 2003.
The shares plunged 58 percent in the three days before the announcement of the acquisition on concern that turmoil in financial markets would wreck Baltimore-based Constellation's energy-trading business.
Buffett struck separate deals with Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the most profitable Wall Street firm, and General Electric Co. to buy a combined $8 billion in preferred shares that pay a 10 percent dividend, allowing Berkshire to earn $800 million a year unless the companies collapse.
``That 10 percent guaranteed return sounded good when he made the deal,'' Yoshikami said in an interview. ``When you compare it to the return that you can find in the equity markets now, it's looking better every day.''
Based on holdings as of June 30, Berkshire's investment in Procter & Gamble Co., the biggest U.S. household goods maker, fell by $1.21 billion last week. Its stake of American Express Co., the largest U.S. credit-card lender, lost about $1.17 billion.
(Source: Bloomberg)