Star Power Success: Berkshire Hathaway Stock Rises When Anne Hathaway Makes Headlines

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Anne Hathaway performs on stage at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards.

GABRIEL BOUYS / AFP / Getty Images)

For Warren Buffett’s mega-corp, this is a most fortunate case of mistaken identity.

They share little more than a name, but this year’s Oscar host Anne Hathaway and corporate conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway have an interesting relationship. When Hathaway the actress is in the news, Hathaway the company sees its stock soar.

(More on TIME.com: See the top stocks of the past decade.)

Dan Mirvish explains that the day before the Oscars, Berkshire Hathaway shares rose 2.02%. And on the Monday following the ceremony (when we were all Googling the Hathaway/Franco hosting duo to relive their failed jokes), Berkshire’s stock went up again – by a whopping 2.94%.

Surely Warren Buffett enjoys the rise the Hollywood star is purported to provide. But is the data really enough to draw a distinct correlation? Mervish took a look at other dates over the past few years that Hathaway was in the headlines. Buffett was a very happy man on every single one of those days.

(More on TIME.com: See Berkshire Hathaway as one of the most respected companies.)

It’s possible that there’s no relationship between the two, and Berkshire’s stock is just that successful – in which case, NewsFeed will be promptly investing – but there is a technical explanation for the phenomenon, too. Automated trading programs take their information from what we’re buzzing about on the Internet. So when those apps catch onto the word “Hathaway,” they believe it’s about the company, not the comedienne. Silly computers. But without a doubt it works to Buffett’s benefit.

Hey Anne, ever thought about buying some stock? We believe you know which one to start with.