Warren Buffett's $173 Billion Warning to Wall Street Is Coming to Fruition -- but Are You Paying Attention?
The Oracle of Omaha's long-term optimism and unwavering focus on value are at odds.
Over the last three weeks, Wall Street has sent investors a wake-up call to remind them that stocks do, in fact, move in both directions. Following a nearly 2.5-year bull market rally, the iconic Dow Jones Industrial Average, benchmark S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), and growth stock-propelled Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) find themselves 8%, 9.3%, and 13.6% below their respective all-time closing highs, as of March 11.
Among Wall Street's numerous money managers, perhaps none is least surprised by this move lower in equities than Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B) billionaire CEO Warren Buffett. Although the aptly named "Oracle of Omaha" is an unwavering long-term optimist when it comes to the U.S. economy and stock market, his $173 billion warning to Wall Street over the last two years has been an ominous signal that trouble was brewing.
Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett. Image source: The Motley Fool.
