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Berkshire Hathaway (XSWX:BRK_B) Beneish M-Score : -2.95 (As of Apr. 27, 2024)


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What is Berkshire Hathaway Beneish M-Score?

Note: Financial institutions were excluded from the sample in Beneish paper when calculating Beneish M-Score. Thus, the prediction might not fit banks and insurance companies.

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.95 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Berkshire Hathaway's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

XSWX:BRK_B' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -3.82   Med: -3.51   Max: -2.95
Current: -2.95

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Berkshire Hathaway was -2.95. The lowest was -3.82. And the median was -3.51.


Berkshire Hathaway Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Berkshire Hathaway for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 0.5589+0.528 * 1+0.404 * 0.9776+0.892 * 1.7827+0.115 * 0.9473
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 0.6057+4.679 * -0.20701-0.327 * 0.9408
=-3.08

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Dec23) TTM:Last Year (Dec22) TTM:
Total Receivables was CHF38,224 Mil.
Revenue was 112588.312 + 57063.427 + 113057.826 + 111199.751 = CHF393,909 Mil.
Gross Profit was 112588.312 + 57063.427 + 113057.826 + 111199.751 = CHF393,909 Mil.
Total Current Assets was CHF183,200 Mil.
Total Assets was CHF925,317 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was CHF187,310 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was CHF11,205 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was CHF25,659 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was CHF52,059 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was CHF106,315 Mil.
Net Income was 32493.995 + -11485.193 + 32335.165 + 32858.952 = CHF86,203 Mil.
Non Operating Income was 57258.408 + 59752.332 + 59972.042 + 56779.425 = CHF233,762 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was 12453.12 + 12296.632 + 11195.574 + 8045.372 = CHF43,991 Mil.
Total Receivables was CHF38,362 Mil.
Revenue was 86205.606 + 61745.179 + 9005.396 + 64003.131 = CHF220,959 Mil.
Gross Profit was 86205.606 + 61745.179 + 9005.396 + 64003.131 = CHF220,959 Mil.
Total Current Assets was CHF158,152 Mil.
Total Assets was CHF883,590 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was CHF183,493 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was CHF10,366 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was CHF23,762 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was CHF48,671 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was CHF112,085 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(38224.16 / 393909.316) / (38362.356 / 220959.312)
=0.097038 / 0.173617
=0.5589

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(220959.312 / 220959.312) / (393909.316 / 393909.316)
=1 / 1
=1

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (183200.097 + 187309.626) / 925316.974) / (1 - (158152.142 + 183492.594) / 883589.994)
=0.599586 / 0.613345
=0.9776

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=393909.316 / 220959.312
=1.7827

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(10365.925 / (10365.925 + 183492.594)) / (11205.014 / (11205.014 + 187309.626))
=0.053472 / 0.056444
=0.9473

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(25659.338 / 393909.316) / (23761.909 / 220959.312)
=0.06514 / 0.10754
=0.6057

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((106315.053 + 52059.23) / 925316.974) / ((112085.454 + 48671.442) / 883589.994)
=0.171157 / 0.181936
=0.9408

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(86202.919 - 233762.207 - 43990.698) / 925316.974
=-0.20701

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Berkshire Hathaway has a M-score of -3.08 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.


Berkshire Hathaway Beneish M-Score Related Terms

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Berkshire Hathaway (XSWX:BRK_B) Business Description

Address
3555 Farnam Street, Omaha, NE, USA, 68131
Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company with a wide array of subsidiaries engaged in diverse activities. The firm's core business segment is insurance, run primarily through Geico, Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group, and Berkshire Hathaway Primary Group. Berkshire has used the excess cash thrown off from these and its other operations over the years to acquire Burlington Northern Santa Fe (railroad), Berkshire Hathaway Energy (utilities and energy distributors), and the firms that make up its manufacturing, service, and retailing operations (which include five of Berkshire's largest noninsurance pretax earnings generators: Precision Castparts, Lubrizol, Clayton Homes, Marmon, and IMC/ISCAR). The conglomerate is unique in that it is run on a completely decentralized basis.