OMAHA, Neb Berkshire Hathaway Inc posted a record quarterly profit on Saturday, boosted by strength in its insurance operations, and appears to have sold a significant number of Apple shares as its cash stake swelled to US$189 billion .

The size of Berkshire's stake in Apple stake fell 22% to US$135.4 billion as of March 31 from US$174.3 billion at the end of 2023, even though the iPhone maker's share price fell just 11% in the quarter.

A large sale would be an about-face for Warren Buffett, who has long touted the iPhone maker's leadership and market dominance. Some investors have expressed concern that Apple had become too large a part of Berkshire's investment portfolio.

First-quarter operating profit rose 39% to US$11.22 billion, or about US$7,807 per Class A share, from US$8.07 billion a year earlier.

Net income fell 64% to US$12.7 billion, or US$8,838 per share, from US$35.5 billion.

An accounting rule requires Berkshire to report unrealised gains from its common stock holdings. Buffett urges investors to ignore the resulting volatility.

Berkshire also repurchased US$2.6 billion of its own stock. It repurchased a small additional amount in the first three weeks of April.

The results were released ahead of Berkshire's annual shareholder meeting in Omaha, part of a weekend that draws tens of thousands of people to the city.

  - Reuters