Its push into pharmaceuticals is "wonderful" news and long overdue, Bill Smead, a longtime Berkshire shareholder and the founder and investment chief of Smead Capital Management, told Business Insider.
Merck's solid balance sheet, strong brand, and robust free cash flow mean it has "everything that Buffett looks for in a business," Smead added. Buffett and his team may have about $6 billion riding on the four drugmakers for other reasons, including an aging US population. Politicians and the public have also shifted from criticizing pharmaceutical companies for fueling the opioid crisis and inflating prescription-drug prices, to cheering them on as they develop COVID-19 vaccines and therapies.
Does that require explanation?
this is terrible news
Warren Buffet has opened a Robinhood account?