Warren Buffett Is About to Retire. Should You Dump Your Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) Stock?
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Greg Abel will soon succeed Warren Buffett as Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO.
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Abel is a capable executive who’s not likely to bring immediate, drastic changes at Berkshire Hathaway.
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Berkshire Hathaway stock is still worth owning as the company’s portfolio is high-quality and properly diversified.
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He’s the Oracle of Omaha and, quite possibly, the greatest living investor. Warren Buffett, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-B), has rewarded Berkshire’s loyal shareholders with outstanding returns based on his value-focused stock portfolio.
However, at age 95, Buffett surely knows that he can’t stay at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway forever. Thus, Buffett is about to cede the company’s CEO position to another executive and, finally, begin his well-deserved retirement.
Yet, this leaves investors with a big question: Is Berkshire Hathaway stock still a buy, or at least a confident hold, with the new year upon us? Before dumping your BRK-B shares, it’s wise to review what’s in Berkshire’s portfolio. Ultimately, Berkshire stock could still deliver robust returns even without Buffett’s leadership.
Earlier this year, Buffett stunned many of his fans when he announced his intention to retire as Berkshire’s CEO at the end of 2025. Starting January 1, 2026, Greg Abel, Berkshire Hathaway’s vice chair of non-insurance operations, will succeed Buffett in the company’s CEO role.
Needless to say, Abel has gigantic shoes to fill at Berkshire. Buffett’s departure represents the end of an illustrious era for the company and, by extension, for value investors worldwide.
However, just as it wasn’t the end of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) when Tim Cook succeeded Steve Jobs, Buffett’s departure isn’t the end of Berkshire Hathaway. It’s only a new chapter, and BRK-B stock could climb higher just like Apple stock did.
Much has been said about how Berkshire Hathaway stock lagged behind the S&P 500 in 2025. This just goes to show that Buffett’s company doesn’t always beat the market and new leadership could give Berkshire Hathaway a boost.
In any case, Abel is no slouch. As vice chair of non-insurance operations, Abel oversaw multiple Berkshire businesses, including Fruit of the Loom, See’s Candies, and Oriental Trading.
The point is that Berkshire Hathaway’s board wouldn’t approve a slacker for the company’s most important role. Before judging Abel’s abilities, consider giving him a chance to prove himself, which would require at least a few quarters if not years.
There’s no denying that Berkshire Hathaway will be a different company under Abel’s leadership. Certainly the “cult of personality” won’t be in effect without Buffett as CEO of Berkshire.
On the other hand, Abel isn’t likely to stray far from Buffett’s value-investing strategies. For the foreseeable future, Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio will almost certainly continue to include high-confidence stocks like Apple, Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), and Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO).
Abel isn’t about to drastically shake up Berkshire’s portfolio, though he will lead differently than Buffett did. Boyar Research President Jonathan Boyar suggested that Abel will be more of a hands-on leader than Buffett was, explaining that Abel “might be able to do things that [Buffett] couldn’t or wouldn’t do.”
Boyar further posited that Boyar is prepared to cut the proverbial fat and consolidate divisions at Berkshire Hathaway. Hence, while Boyar might not be the value-investing legend that Buffett has been, the new CEO will have an opportunity to make Berkshire leaner.
Perhaps most importantly, Berkshire Hathaway’s holdings, ranging from Fruit of the Loom to Apple and Coca-Cola, are broadly diversified. This gives BRK-B stock what Mel Casey at FBB Capital Partners called an “all-weather quality.”
In Casey’s view, owning Berkshire Hathaway stock is almost like a “lower-risk alternative to owning the broader market.” Granted, Berkshire stock won’t have the “Buffett premium” anymore, but it’s still a long-standing alternative to the S&P 500.
In other words, investing in Berkshire Hathaway isn’t exactly the same thing as investing in Buffett. Instead of focusing on the “Buffett premium,” check Berkshire’s portfolio holdings and think about whether these are good businesses to own a piece of.
You’d be hard-pressed to find any low-quality companies in Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio. Moreover, Berkshire’s holdings are generally reasonably valued. There’s no indication that Abel is about to break Buffett’s tradition of buying great companies at good price points.
So, stay calm and conduct your due diligence on Abel and on Berkshire Hathaway as a whole. Be prepared for changes, but don’t assume that Buffett’s strategies will be abandoned. Finally, feel free to hold your BRK-B shares if others dump them; that way, you can “be like Buffett” and buy when other people are selling in haste.
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