Warren Buffett’s public craft criticism is extremely unusual for a typically passive owner

Wall Street shared Buffett’s disappointment.

Kraft Heinz shares fell to 7.6% on Tuesday after message Early this morning, but returned some of this loss, finishing only 2.4% for the break -off week.

Will Buffett’s misfortune encourage Berkshire to sell part or all his share?

He did not rule it out, saying, “We will continue to do everything we think is in Berkshire’s best interest.”

Buffett added: “If we turn to the sale of our shares, we would not accept the offer for the block unless the same offer was made to other Kraft Heinz shareholders.” That is, unless someone is ready to buy the whole company.

Becky reported that Buffett did not like $ 300 million in additional overhead costs that would be spent on applying next year, and he doesn’t think it will bring very good.

“It certainly did not turn out to be a brilliant idea of ​​collecting them, but I don’t think its separation will correct it.”

In 2013, Berkshire joined Brazil’s 3G Capital Management To buy HJ HEINZ for $ 23.3 billionS

Two years later when Kraft blends in with Heinz, Berkshire appeared with over 325 million shares in the new company worth about $ 24 billion when The deal closed In July 2015

While the Berkshire bet on the Berkshire bet well after the merger, increasing to about $ 30 billion in 2016, he sharply slid over the next three years and bounced around $ 10 billion from 2020.

In his Letter for 2015 to shareholdersBuffett wrote the stock worth Berkshire $ 9.8 billion, so he currently has a total loss of about $ 1.0 billion.

Berkshire recorded the investment with $ 3.8 billion In the second quarter, to better reflect its market value. Do $ 3.0 billion in unsubscribe In 2019

In a 2019 CNBC Interview Live With Becky, Buffett quickly regrets the role of Berkshire in the merger of Kraft Heinz, saying he was “overpass” for good company.

The price of the shares has dropped by 69% of the end of the merger.

The division did not come as a complete surprise.

In July, The Wall Street Journal Kraft Heinz reports “He was looking to rotate from much of his grocery business, including many craft products.”

Two Berkshire leaders resigned from the KHC board in May After the company revealed “an ongoing evaluation of strategic transactions to unlock the value of shareholders”.

These resignations caused speculation at a time when Berkshire could start selling, “creating a shares overhang”, According to an analyst.

This overhang is even more wicked now.

As Berkshire holds more than 10% of KHC shares, he will have to report any open market sales within two working days, which may encourage other investors to sell.

Buffett is not alone in his criticism of separation.

Financial times writes, “At its core, the problem with Kraft Heinz is that it failed to respond to changing the tastes of users.” He believes that the division is “less bold strategic rotation and more results of years of insufficiency caused by prioritization of (spelling out of the UK) to reduce the cost of innovation.”

Reuters Columnist Jennifer Saba He calls “the processing (of) sausage … as unpleasant to see as always.”

“Although it produces a wide variety of brands, the endless cycle of wheels and trade seems to come in only one yuki scent” with “unlawfully optimistic” financial engineering.

Warren Buffett admits Berkshire Hathaway paid too much for Kraft in his merger with Heinz, citing the growing price power of retailers in front of the brands.

The holdings are from June 30, 2025, as reported in 13F Submission of Berkshire Hathaway On August 14, 2025, except for:

The full list of farms and current market values ​​is available from CNBC.com Berkshire Hathaway Portfolio TrackerS

Please send any questions or comments about the newsletter to me on alex.crimpen@nbcuni.comS (Excuse me, but we don’t send questions or comments to Buffett himself.)

If you are no longer subscribed to this newsletter, you can register hereS

Also, Buffett’s annual letters to shareholders are highly recommended reading. Have been collected Here on the Berkshire websiteS

– Alex Krippen, editor, Warren Buffett clock