Warren Buffett’s firm, Berkshire Hathaway, has made a number of changes to its stock portfolio at the end of last year. Berkshire’s most notable move
Warren Buffett’s firm, Berkshire Hathaway, has made a number of changes to its stock portfolio at the end of last year. Berkshire’s most notable move was adding to its already sizeable stake in Apple, increasing its holding by nearly 21 million shares during the last quarter of 2022 to take its total to 915.6 million shares. Buffett has previously identified Apple as one of the four companies that drive Berkshire’s success, alongside its insurance unit, energy company, and BNSF railway.
At the same time, Berkshire Hathaway made significant cuts to its investments in Taiwan Semiconductor, US Bancorp, and Bank of New York Mellon. It reduced its stake in Taiwan Semiconductor from 60 million shares to 8.3 million shares just three months after announcing the investment. Similarly, its investment in US Bancorp was cut from 52.5 million shares to just 6.7 million shares by the end of the year. Meanwhile, the firm continued to trim its position in Activision Blizzard, reducing its holding to 52.7 million shares. Buffett has previously said that he invested in the video game maker as a way to bet on Microsoft’s acquisition going through.
The quarterly filings submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by Berkshire Hathaway do not make clear which investments Buffett is responsible for and which ones were made by the company’s two other investment managers. However, Buffett is known to handle all of Berkshire’s biggest investments worth $1 billion or more. He does not comment regularly on these stock filings.
Berkshire Hathaway also added to one of its smaller investments by picking up more than 1.2 million shares in Louisiana Pacific to give it control of nearly 10% of the company that makes building products. The firm also trimmed its investments in the grocer Kroger and Ally Financial.
Buffett’s biggest investment in the past year in Occidental Petroleum remained unchanged during the quarter, with Berkshire holding 194.4 million shares and warrants to buy another 83.9 million shares. The firm also bought nearly 2 million more Chevron shares during the quarter, giving it control of 8.7% of the oil giant.
The SEC filings do not reflect one of the most significant changes in Berkshire’s portfolio because the company’s investment in Chinese electric car maker BYD is held on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Since August 2022, Berkshire has sold off 95 million of the 225 million BYD shares it bought back in 2008.
Berkshire Hathaway’s investment portfolio includes an eclectic mix of dozens of different manufacturing, retail, and service businesses. The company’s investments are widely followed by investors due to Buffett’s successful investing record over the years.
In summary, Berkshire Hathaway has increased its stake in Apple while reducing investments in Taiwan Semiconductor, US Bancorp, and Bank of New York Mellon. The company also made smaller changes to its investment portfolio, including picking up more shares in Louisiana Pacific and trimming its investments in Kroger and Ally Financial. While the SEC filings do not reflect the significant changes in Berkshire’s portfolio, including the company’s reduction of its stake in Chinese electric car maker BYD, they are still closely monitored by investors due to Buffett’s track record.
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