NYSE technical issue impacts some stock values, exchange incorrectly shows Berkshire Hathaway down 99%

A technical issue at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday caused the A-class shares of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway to appear to be down nearly 100%.

Trading was halted in those shares, as well as in Barrick Gold and Nuscale Power, which had also seen dramatic falls. Barrick and Nuscale have since resumed trading.

The NYSE said in a 10:11 a.m. ET update that it was investigating a technical issue related to the limit up and limit down bands, which are mechanisms to halt stocks for excessive volatility. It is unclear exactly how many stocks are affected by the issue.

The cause of the technical glitch was unclear. After the NYSE said it was experiencing issues, the Consolidated Tape Association, the organization used by major exchanges to jointly provide real-time stock quotes, reported an earlier failure that caused it to switch over to its disaster recovery center.

There were less than 4,000 recorded trades on the day for Berkshire’s A-class shares when trading was halted. Trading continued in the B-class shares, which were down less than 1% on Monday morning.

The halts did not appear to have a notable effect on the value of the major market averages.

The issues at the NYSE are another reminder that the exchanges and data providers that are central to Wall Street are not completely error free. Other recent examples include an hourlong freeze for CME index data feeds last week and a Nasdaq system error in December that led to some orders being canceled.

The NYSE also had a day in January 2023 when the opening auctions for some stocks did not occur properly.

On normal days, Berkshire’s original Class A shares carry one of the highest price tags on Wall Street. Last week, each one sold for about 45% more than the median price of a home in the U.S. Class A shares hit an all-time closing high of $634,440 on March 28.

That’s because Buffett has never split the stock, as he wants to attract shareholders who are investment-oriented with long-term horizons. The Ben Graham protege has said that many Berkshire shareholders use their stock as a savings account.

Berkshire issued Class B shares in 1996 at a price equal to one thirtieth of a Class A share to cater to smaller investors wanting a small piece of the Buffett’s performance.

Buffett is the largest shareholder of Berkshire, owning more than 38% of class A shares, according to FactSet. The “Oracle of Omaha” pledged to give away the fortune he built at Berkshire, the Omaha-based conglomerate he started running since 1965.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.