Berkshire's new CEO is putting the company's cash to work.
Berkshire's new CEO is putting the company's cash to work.
When Warren Buffett stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA +1.08%) (BRKB +1.21%), there were a lot of eyes on his successor, Greg Abel. Would Buffett's replacement follow the Oracle of Omaha's approach to buying stocks?
Less than a year into Abel's tenure, we're getting an answer. Berkshire went on a buying spree during the second quarter, adding to its positions in Alphabet (GOOGL -2.47%) (GOOG -2.32%) and Delta Air Lines (DAL -3.47%). And another purchase stood out -- $4.5 billion of Berkshire Hathaway's own stock.
Here's what that means for investors.
Berkshire is putting its cash to work
For years, Buffett accumulated an enormous cash reserve at Berkshire Hathaway, preferring to wait for attractive investment opportunities rather than overpay for stocks.
That approach helped Berkshire build a reputation for finding companies with strong competitive advantages and buying their shares when they traded below their intrinsic value -- what the underlying business is actually worth.
Abel appears to be following that philosophy, although he's becoming more aggressive about putting Berkshire's money to work.
During the second quarter, Berkshire increased its Alphabet holdings substantially, adding millions of shares of the Google parent company. It also bought an additional 17.5 million shares of Delta, increasing its stake by 44%. Berkshire opened a position in Delta during the first quarter -- Abel's first as CEO -- and now has more than 57 million shares of Delta stock.
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Averytin News Financial update.