Documents recently disclosed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission show that Berkshire Hathaway, owned by renowned U.S. investor Warren Buffett, has increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum again, following its purchase of the company's shares at the end of December last year.

Documents show that Berkshire Hathaway bought 763,017 shares of Occidental Petroleum common stock last Friday at an average price of $46.8195 per share, increasing its holdings to a total of approximately $35.7 million. After this increase in holdings, Berkshire Hathaway's shareholding ratio in Occidental Petroleum increased to approximately 28.3%, making it the latter's largest shareholder. Although U.S. regulators have previously approved Berkshire Hathaway's acquisition of up to 50% of Occidental Petroleum's shares, Buffett made it clear that he has no intention to "completely control the oil company."

Throughout 2024, dragged down by falling energy prices, Occidental Petroleum's stock price fell by more than 17%. Berkshire Hathaway bought nearly 8.9 million shares in late December last year, when Occidental Petroleum's stock price fell significantly. Currently, Occidental Petroleum is Berkshire Hathaway's sixth-largest holding.

Berkshire's current common stock position in Occidental Petroleum is worth approximately US$12.9 billion, and its book losses have exceeded US$2.2 billion.