OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) — The annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting drew a smaller crowd this year with a new CEO at the helm.
The event usually brings in around 40,000 people. This year, with Warren Buffett no longer leading the company, shareholders noticed lighter attendance.
Scott Schmidt and his wife have attended the shareholders event since 2007.
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“Sitting in the audience there today, we noticed that it was probably down, we guess, about a third of what it was last year,” Schmidt said.
Buffett’s influence on attendance
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Schmidt said Buffett’s presence drew many attendees.
“People came just to see him, and not so much because of Berkshire Hathaway,” Schmidt said.
Shareholder Bill Hughes has attended the meeting for more than a decade. He also noticed the drop in attendance.
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“The arena was packed the last two years,” Hughes said. “This year, the upper level, especially around the sides and back, were kind of sparse.”
New CEO leads meeting
CEO Greg Abel led the meeting, taking over a role that typically fell to Buffett.
Schmidt said Abel did well in his new role.
“I thought he did a really good job and covered a breadth of things,” Schmidt said.
Hughes said Abel brought in the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad CEO and the NetJets CEO.
“It was nice hearing from them,” Hughes said.
Schmidt said the change in attendance did not diminish the experience.
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“It’s more of a transition than a complete change,” Schmidt said.
Official attendance numbers from the Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders event have not yet been released.
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