Aluminum Company of America

Aluminum Company of America (ALCOA) was a major American industrial company that was a significant common stock holding for Berkshire Hathaway in 1980.

📝 The Investment

• Portfolio Concentration: Listed in the 1980 letter as a major holding with a position size over $25 million.
• Position (1980): Berkshire held 464,317 shares with a cost of $25.6 million and a market value of $27.7 million.
• Context: Like the investment in Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corporation, this holding reflected Buffett's willingness to invest in capital-intensive "commodity" industrials when they were priced at a significant discount to their replacement value or earning power.

🔗 Connections

• Company: Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corporation (Peer)
• Source: 1980 Letter