Charlie Munger dead at 99: What Warren Buffett's vice-chair said on Apple

Charlie Munger, the billionaire investor and the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, has passed away at the age of 99. He would have turned 100 on the new year’s day. Munger was highly regarded for his brilliant wit and analysis and was the man behind building up the Warren Buffett-led investment firm to its present gargantuan status. His insights and vision in the technology sector led to the company making pin-pointed investments that paid large dividends. Even though Berkshire came very late to the Apple party, one of the biggest tech firms he bet on was the Cupertino-based tech giant and throughout Munger constantly highlighted how good an investment it was. In fact, it is also the company’s biggest investment with 859 million shares purchased worth 148 billion dollars. Let us take a look at the things Munger said about Apple that highlight his admiration for the iPhone makers.

The admiration was mutual, it should be said. After the news of Munger passing away broke, Apple CEO Tim Cook took to X (formerly Twitter) and posted, “A titan of business and keen observer of the world around him, Charlie Munger helped build an American institution, and through his wisdom and insights, inspired a generation of leaders. He will be sorely missed. Rest in peace Charlie”.

Charlie Munger on Apple

In 2018, Munger spoke about Berkshire Hathaway owning Apple shares in an interview with CNBC. At that time, the investment firm owned 240.3 million shares of the tech giant. When asked why he was so inclined towards Apple, Munger said, “I think we’ve been a little too restrained. I wish we owned more of it”.

Calling it a “desirable combination”, Munger highlighted that Apple shares were reasonably priced, strong, and had a smart management team under Cook.

He reiterated his stand again in an interview with Yahoo Finance in 2022. He said, “Apple is one of the strongest companies in the world. I judge the strength of the company based on how much the customers love it. And I’ve got zillions of friends who would part with their right arm before they part with their iPhone. That’s a hugely powerful position to be in. I think Apple is ungodly well managed”.

Interestingly, as per reports, Munger himself never owned an iPhone.