Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway invested $1 billion in ATVI before the Microsoft deal

Published , by TJ Denzer

Activision Blizzard has floundered tremendously in the wake of a lawsuit from California alleging toxic workplace practices and sexual harassment at the company, and some investors have scooped the opportunity to make money off of it as ATVI stock prices dropped. One such group is notable billionaire Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway company, which reportedly dropped about $1 billion USD worth of investment in Activision Blizzard before Microsoft announced its acquisition.

Berkshire Hathaway’s investment in Activision Blizzard (ATVI) came from an SEC regulatory filing, as reported by CNBC. According to the report, Buffet’s investment group invested in around 14,658,121 shares of the company, coming out to $975 million USD in total cost. This came after Activision Blizzard faced a lawsuit from California’s DFEH over sexual harassment and discrimination in its workplace when the stock price crumbled over the course of the year. It was after this that Microsoft would announce its upcoming acquisition of Activision Blizzard to the tune of $68.7 billion.

Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway got in on Activision Blizzard (ATVI) stock as it was dipping and reeling from a lawsuit and further controversy within the company.

The timing of Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway group investing into Activision Blizzard is rather fortunate for the former. Ultimately, with Microsoft acquiring the company and all of its shares, Berkshire Hathaway is set to have a very handsome payday. After all, Microsoft is poised to buy Activision Blizzard at $95 a share, which raised its stock price up to $82 per share, though it’s dropped off a bit since then. Either way, it’s a huge jump and a massive boon for Berkshire Hathaway, considering Activision Blizzard stock dropped as low as around $57 per share in the last year since it’s been caught up in scandal and controversy.

It still remains to be seen if the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) gets involved in Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard any more than it has already. However, if all goes through, Berkshire Hathaway and Warren Buffet are set to get even wealthier in the wake of the Microsoft/Activision Blizzard deal.