Berkshire to Buy MH Company

Berkshire Hathaway Inc., the Omaha, Neb.-based firm controlled by Warren Buffett, may have lost its bid to buy Conseco Finance Inc., but that doesn't mean it is shying away from the manufactured housing business.The company just entered into an agreement to buy Clayton Homes Inc., a Knoxville, Tenn., builder, retailer, and financer of manufactured homes. Clayton stockholders will receive $12.50 per share cash. The deal was announced after trading closed on April 1. On that day, Clayton's stock closed at $11.13 per share, up 9 cents per share. The following morning, Clayton opened at $12.65 per share, although by 11 a.m. it had retreated to $12.46. This is not Berkshire's first foray into manufactured housing. The company supplied some of the debtor-in-possession financing for Oakwood Homes, Greensboro, N.C., and has an agreement that will make Berkshire Oakwood's largest shareholder when the company emerges from bankruptcy.