| Tomorrow is Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting, so grab a Coke and settle in to read Alexandre Rajbhandari’s preview. Plus: An Israeli hostage negotiator now works to outsmart savvy internet criminals. If this email was forwarded to you, click here to sign up. In Omaha, Nebraska, on Thursday small groups of people were converging on the same street corner to take pictures in front of a seemingly indistinct house. It’s the home of Warren Buffett. And some visitors had traveled a long way. Kumi flew with her son from Tokyo, where she runs a bookstore. A shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. for a few years, she will attend the conglomerate’s annual meeting Saturday. Before the official event, she swung by Buffett’s favorite McDonald’s restaurant and stopped by his residence for a snapshot. “It’s a great house, but it doesn’t seem like the house of the world’s sixth wealthiest person,” says Kumi, who got to know him by reading his biography. “I am a big fan of Warren Buffett.” Every year, thousands of Buffett enthusiasts descend on this Midwestern city to hear their idol share his views and investing philosophy. This year’s festivities—also known as “Woodstock for capitalists”—come with a few small adjustments to the program. The half-hour movie that traditionally opens the day won’t return. The segment, which usually featured ads for Berkshire Hathaway’s many businesses, was also famous for its star-studded comedy skits, with the casts of Desperate Housewives, The Office and Breaking Bad making appearances in recent years. Last year’s movie, an emotional tribute to Buffett’s business partner Charlie Munger, who died in 2023 at age 99, is expected to remain the segment’s last iteration. The day will also be shorter. The 94-year-old billionaire and his deputies Greg Abel and Ajit Jain will stop taking questions from the audience at 1 p.m., a few hours earlier than usual. This will leave more time for shareholders to shop all things Berkshire Hathaway in the exhibition hall, such as Squishmallows plush toys or Dairy Queen treats.  Buffett. Photographer: Scott Eells/Bloomberg Still, with four-and-a-half hours of Q&A, devoted visitors are sure to get their share of pearls of wisdom and quirky zingers. Here’s what else to expect from the meeting this year. Apart from earnings, which will be released shortly before the meeting starts, stock investments are likely to dominate the conversation. Buffett, who’s shied away from making large acquisitions in recent years, may have seen the recent market selloff as a window of opportunity. “Obviously people are going to be looking to read the tea leaves to see where he’s going to be investing next,” says Cathy Seifert, an analyst for CFRA Research. But even with a record $334.2 billion cash pile, the famed investor may have decided to remain on the sidelines. “I don’t think that the sectors that sold off the most are necessarily the ones where he might be looking to put capital to work,” says Jim Shanahan, an analyst for Edward Jones. “But an opportunity maybe has emerged.” Buffett may provide investors with the reasons leading him to consider selling his real estate brokerage unit Homeservices of America to Compass Inc., a very rare move in the billionaire’s buy-and-hold playbook. Buffett typically asks shareholders to refrain from steering the conversation toward politics. That will be particularly challenging this year, with Donald Trump’s trade war rocking the equities market and the business of investing—as well as Berkshire Hathaway’s other operations. For instance, tariffs are expected to result in higher costs of repair for auto insurers like Buffett’s Geico. Berkshire Hathaway is “in essence a microcosm of the broader economy—a lot of their businesses will be impacted,” Seifert says. “I do think that investors will want and will welcome a robust tariff assessment and discussion.” Although Buffett said he wouldn’t endorse any political candidate last year, that hasn’t prevented him from making sideways comments. He recently called tariffs “an act of war.” Shareholders might also expect more clarity on the future of Berkshire Hathaway. Abel, who leads all of its noninsurance businesses, is expected to replace Buffett as CEO, but it’s largely unknown what the rest of the C-suite will look like. Buffett and his deputies may take the opportunity to start introducing new faces. “I think that’s something they need to do,” Seifert says. | 
