Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway hits record high as Greg Abel deploys $21.3 billion
Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares just hit a record high of $543.06.
The short version
- New CEO Greg Abel deployed over $21.3 billion in less than a year.
- Investors are cheering his moves after Warren Buffett stepped down.
- That means confidence is returning to the massive holding company.
Berkshire Hathaway's stock rewrote the record books on Wednesday, with Class B shares rising as much as 3.2% to $543.06, surpassing the previous high set in May 2025. The less-liquid Class A shares also hit a record, touching an intraday high of $814,027.80.
The move was read by the market as a sign that investor doubts about the post-Buffett era are fading, replaced by a vote of confidence in new CEO Greg Abel's capital allocation abilities. Warren Buffett announced he would step down after nearly six decades at the helm, with Abel taking over as CEO in early 2026.
Greg Abel, the 64-year-old head of Berkshire Hathaway, formally took office on Jan. 1 and has since restructured management while beginning to deploy the massive cash pile left by his predecessor. Unlike Buffett's long-standing strategy of sitting still, he has chosen to deploy capital on three fronts: acquisitions, equity investments, and buybacks.
Beyond those moves, Berkshire this year also bought shares in homebuilder Lennar and invested about $930 million in total in Italian tech group Bending Spoons. For years, Berkshire has accumulated an astonishing cash pile, sitting at $365.5 billion as of June 30, and how to find attractive investment outlets while maintaining financial strength has been a core concern for investors.
Abel quickly provided an answer after taking office, giving the outside world an initial basis for assessing his ability to run the conglomerate. The rally is not entirely a vote of confidence in Abel, as investors have recently rotated out of high-flying AI and tech stocks into traditional industries with stable cash flow.
Berkshire is seen as one beneficiary of that rotation, while its massive cash reserves earn higher interest income. Even legends need fresh legs, and Mr. Abel is proving he can spend.
