Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company with a wide array of subsidiaries engaged in diverse activities. The firm's core business segment is insurance, run primarily through Geico, Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group, and Berkshire Hathaway Primary Group. Berkshire has used the excess cash thrown off from these and its other operations over the years to acquire Burlington Northern Santa Fe (railroad), Berkshire Hathaway Energy (utilities and energy distributors), and the companies that make up its manufacturing, service, and retailing operations (which include five of Berkshire's largest noninsurance pretax earnings generators: Precision Castparts, Lubrizol, Clayton Homes, Marmon, and IMC/ISCAR). The conglomerate is unique in that it is run on a completely decentralized basis.

United Rentals is the world’s largest equipment rental company. It principally operates in the United States and Canada, where it commands approximately 17% share in a highly fragmented market. It serves three end markets: general industrial, commercial construction, and residential construction. Like its peers, United Rentals historically has provided its customers with equipment that was intermittently used, such as aerial equipment and portable generators. As the company has grown organically and through hundreds of acquisitions since it went public in 1997, its catalog (fleet size of $21 billion) now includes a range of specialty equipment and other items that can be rented for indefinite periods.

This edition features the Wastco's potential overheating, Ryman's elder care, Hong Kong and Singapore banks, and Masco, Compass Minerals, and Honeywell.

This edition features the Wastco's potential overheating, Ryman's elder care, Hong Kong and Singapore banks, and Masco, Compass Minerals, and Honeywell.