Investors always examine Berkshire Hathaway’s earnings reports carefully for clues about what CEO Warren Buffett might invest in.

Berkshire is scheduled to release its third-quarter earnings report Friday afternoon.

Investors will be looking for any estimate of Berkshire’s insurance losses from Hurricane Sandy. They’ll also be watching to see how Berkshire’s BNSF Railway fared as major freight railroads grapple with weak coal demand.

The three analysts surveyed by FactSet expect Berkshire to report earnings of $1.38 per Class B share on $39.04 billion in revenue.

The bottom-line profit the company reports could differ significantly from the operating results for Berkshire’s 80-odd businesses because the paper value of its derivatives tied to several stock-market indexes varies widely.