(Reuters) - Not even the coronavirus pandemic could dampen Warren Buffett’s enthusiasm for the future of America and his company Berkshire Hathaway Inc. “The letter highlighted the innovation and values that have become the backbone of America, and that’s perfectly acceptable,” said Cathy Seifert, an analyst at CFRA Research with a “hold” rating on Berkshire. “Given the reverence that investors have for him, the letter was striking for what it omitted,” she added. “A new generation of investors demands a degree of social awareness, and that companies like Berkshire set out their beliefs, standards and goals.” Buffett also signaled a long-term commitment to Apple Inc, calling Berkshire’s $120.4 billion stake and its ownership of the BNSF railroad its most valuable assets - “it’s pretty much a toss-up” - after its insurance operations. PROFIT RISES EVEN AS JOBS ARE LOST Berkshire on Saturday also reported net income of $35.84 billion in the fourth quarter, and $42.52 billion for the year, both reflecting large gains in its stock holdings. Operating income, which Buffett considers a more accurate measure of performance, fell 9% for the year to $21.92 billion. The stock buybacks have continued in 2021, with Berkshire repurchasing more than $4 billion of its own stock. It ended 2020 with $138.3 billion of cash. Berkshire has more than 90 operating units including the BNSF railroad, Geico car insurer, Dairy Queen ice cream, See’s candies, and namesake energy and real estate brokerage businesses. Its workforce declined 8% from a year earlier to about 360,000 employees. Bigger drops were reported at BNSF, which shed 5,600 jobs, and See’s, where employment fell 16%. The pandemic hit no Berkshire business harder than Precision Castparts Corp, which shed 13,473, or 40%, of its jobs. Berkshire bought the aircraft and industrial parts maker in 2016 for $32.1 billion, Buffett’s largest acquisition, and took a $9.8 billion writedown as the pandemic decimated travel and punished Precision’s aerospace customers. “I paid too much for the company,” Buffett wrote. “I was simply too optimistic about PCC’s normalized profit potential. “PCC is far from my first error of that sort,” he said. “But it’s a big one.” Berkshire said some businesses are beginning to recover form the pandemic. “Certainly 2021 is going to be a much stronger year, dependent upon the speed of vaccinations and the opening of the U.S. economy,” said Jim Shanahan, an analyst at Edward Jones & Co with a “buy” rating on Berkshire. Buffett also said Berkshire’s annual meeting will be held in Los Angeles rather than Omaha, allowing 97-year-old Vice Chairman Charlie Munger, a Californian, to rejoin him when answering about 3-1/2 hours of shareholder questions. Vice Chairmen Greg Abel, 58, and Ajit Jain, 69, who are widely considered frontrunners to succeed Buffett as chief executive, will also be available to answer questions.