Warren Buffett’s Bet on Airlines

I am quoted in The Dallas Morning News: “Warren Buffett bet big on the big four airlines — and so far it is paying off”

“Buffett said the airline labor problems from previous years have been mostly resolved, you’ve had a consolidation and the airlines are less likely to have suicidal price competition,” said David Kass, a business professor at the University of Maryland who runs a Warren Buffett blog.

Earlier this year, there was speculation that Berkshire Hathaway would invest further by purchasing a majority stake in Southwest Airlines, but since then rumors have subsided, Kass said.

For now, Kass said Berkshire Hathaway looks intent on holding onto his shares in airline stocks — unless there are fundamental changes to the industry or one of the carriers.

“He prefers to own a company forever,” Kass said. “He’s owned Coca-Cola since 1988. The only time he would get rid of a company is if [it] ran into significant operating problems.”