Warren Buffett To Depart Red-Hot Berkshire Hathaway Leaving Massive Cash Holdings

If any investor has stood the test of time, it’s Warren Buffett, and with good reason. For years, the “Oracle of Omaha” has had a rock star-like presence in the investing world, and his annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting draws thousands of loyal fans who are investors. This year was no different, as tens of thousands of investors made the pilgrimage to Omaha to see their hero live and in person. We watched the entire investors meeting, and as usual, Mr. Buffett was charming and witty, along with his right-hand man and successor, Greg Abel, who it was announced will be recommended to the board to take over the company at the end of the year, and Ajit Jain, the company’s Vice Chairman of insurance operations. He answered questions provided by Becky Quick from CNBC and from various shareholders in the audience. 

24/7 Wall St. Key Points:

• Mr. Buffett confirmed that Berkshire Hathaway still has a $ 348 billion cash/T-bills stash
• He and his top aides are very optimistic about their Japanese investments, which are spread across the country’s economy
• Berkshire Hathaway is up 19% versus the 3.2% loss in the S&P 500
• Should Berkshire Hathaway be a part of your stock holdings? Why not schedule a meeting with an experienced financial advisor near you for a portfolio review?. Click here to get started finding one today. (Sponsored)

For over four hours, the 94-year-old investing patriarch combined his usual folksy humor and his patented cheery positive outlook while answering many different questions, not the least of which was what he intended to do with his massive pile of ready cash. He was decidedly vague on that, suggesting they were still looking for opportunity despite a high velocity 20% decline in the stock market this year. He noted that the recent sell-off was not a “dramatic bear market.”

Mr Buffett suggested that at some point in the next 20 years, there could be a dramatic event, which he described as a potential “hair curler” in terms of the size and scope of the event. He did offer a sage piece of advice for those looking to invest in the stock market: “Check your emotions at the door”. Berkshire Hathaway did not buy back any outstanding shares for the second quarter in a row. In addition, the firm has been a net seller of stocks for the last ten quarters in a row.

Long-time investors and Buffett mavens are familiar with his quote, “His favorite holding for an S&P 500 stock is forever”, so it’s not surprising to report that for all of the success and stature Berkshire Hathaway has in the investment world, that 4 top companies make up almost 60% of the funds’ total publicly traded stock holdings. While much more concentrated than most portfolio managers would consider, the strategy has worked well for Berkshire Hathaway investors for years and is likely to continue doing so. We wanted to highlight the four top companies that hold so much territory in the fund. 

Why do we cover Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway stocks?

There are few investors with the results and reputation that Mr. Buffett has garnered over the last 50 years. While investing has evolved over the past half-century, buying good companies with products and services recognized worldwide, while paying dividends, will always remain a timeless approach. 

American Express

American Express is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation specializing in payment cards. This stock has been very strong and pays a small dividend. American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) is a globally integrated payments company that deals with card-issuing, merchant-acquiring, and card network businesses.

It offers products and services to customers worldwide, including consumers, small businesses, mid-sized companies, and large corporations.

Its segments include:

• U.S. Consumer Services (USCS)
• Commercial Services (CS)
• International Card Services (ICS)
• Global Merchant and Network Services (GMNS)

USCS offers travel and lifestyle services and banking and non-card financing products.

CS offers payment, expense management, banking, and non-card financing products.

ICS provides services to international customers, including travel and lifestyle services, and manages certain international joint ventures and its loyalty coalition business.

GMNS operates a payments network that processes and settles card transactions, acquires merchants, and provides multichannel marketing programs, capabilities, services, and data analytics.

Berkshire Hathaway owns 151,610,700 shares, 21.6 % of American Express’s float, and 15.5% of the portfolio.

Apple

Apple designs, develops, and sells consumer electronics, computer software, and online services. It’s almost hard to comprehend that the legacy technology giant, with 300 million shares, still makes up a stunning 22.2% of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, which holds 2% of Apple’s stock even after selling tens of millions of shares over the last year. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide.

The company offers:

• The iPhone, a line of smartphones
• Mac, a line of personal computers
• iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets
• Wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod

Apple also provides AppleCare support and cloud services and operates various platforms, including the App Store, which allows customers to discover and download applications and digital content such as books, music, videos, games, and podcasts.

In addition, the company offers various services, such as:

• Apple Arcade, a game subscription service
• Apple Fitness+, a personalized fitness service
• Apple Music, which gives users a curated listening experience with on-demand radio stations
• Apple News+, a subscription news and magazine service
• Apple TV+, which offers exclusive original content
• Apple Card, a co-branded credit card
• Apple Pay, a cashless payment service

Bank of America

Bank of America Corporation is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. It posted outstanding first-quarter results and wants to increase its share repurchases. Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a ubiquitous bank and financial holding company in the United States.

Its segments include:

• Consumer Banking
• Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM)
• Global Banking
• Global Markets

The Consumer Banking segment offers consumers and small businesses a range of credit, banking, and investment products and services.

The GWIM includes two businesses:

• Merrill Wealth Management, which provides tailored solutions to meet clients’ needs through a complete set of investment management, brokerage, banking, and retirement products
• Bank of America Private Bank, which provides comprehensive wealth management solutions

The Global Banking segment provides various lending-related products and services, integrated working capital management and treasury solutions, and underwriting and advisory services.

The Global Markets segment offers sales, trading, and research services to institutional clients across fixed-income, credit, currency, commodity, and equity businesses.

Despite selling a stunning 326 million shares in 2024, Berkshire Hathaway still owns 680,233,587 shares, 8.9% of the float and 10.3% of the portfolio.

The Coca-Cola Company

Coca-Cola is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It remains a top long-time holding of Warren Buffett, who owns a massive 400 million shares. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world’s largest beverage company, offering consumers more than 500 sparkling and still brands.

Led by Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most valuable and recognizable brands, the Company’s portfolio features 20 billion-dollar brands, including:

• Diet Coke
• Coca-Cola Light
• Coca-Cola Zero Sugar
• Caffeine-free Diet Coke
• Cherry Coke
• Fanta Orange
• Fanta Zero Orange
• Fanta Zero Sugar
• Fanta Apple
• Sprite
• Sprite Zero Sugar
• Simply Orange
• Simply Apple
• Simply Grapefruit
• Fresca
• Schweppes
• Dasani
• Fuze Tea
• Glacéau Smartwater
• Glacéau Vitaminwater
• Gold Peak
• Ice Dew
• Powerade
• Topo Chico
• Minute Maid

Globally, they are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, ready-to-drink coffees, juices, and juice drinks.

Through the world’s most extensive beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the company’s beverages at a rate of more than 1.9 billion servings a day. It’s also important to remember that the company owns 16.7% of Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST), which continues to deliver big numbers.

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