Warren Buffett Will Never Sell These 4 Favorite ‘Forever’ Dividend Giants

Warren Buffett stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway on December 31, 2025, after six decades leading the conglomerate he transformed from a struggling textile mill into a $1 trillion empire. The “Oracle of Omaha” left his successor, Greg Abel, with a very concentrated portfolio: almost 65% of Berkshire’s $381 billion portfolio is invested in just six stocks. Abel, who has served as vice chair overseeing non-insurance operations, officially took over as CEO on January 1, 2026. At 95 years old, Buffett isn’t fully retiring—he will remain chair of the board and plans to continue coming to the Omaha headquarters as much as before. However, he has stated he will be “going quiet” and leaving all decision-making to Abel. While that is likely the case, it’s a solid bet that four dividend stocks Buffett loves will never be sold.

Quick Read

• American Express (AXP) owns 22.1% of the float and is 14.7% of Berkshire’s portfolio with a 1.10% dividend yield; Coca-Cola (KO) has a 63-year dividend increase streak and is 9.9% of the portfolio with a 2.68% yield; Moody’s (MCO) is a leading credit ratings provider with a 0.86% dividend yield; Occidental Petroleum (OXY) is 5.6% of the portfolio after Berkshire’s $9.7B acquisition of its OxyChem subsidiary on January 2, 2026, with a 1.54% dividend yield.

• Greg Abel took over as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway on January 1, 2026, as Warren Buffett stepped down after six decades to focus on his role as board chair, while the four dividend stocks are core holdings unlikely to be sold under his leadership.

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In his shareholder letters and statements over the years, Buffett has pointed to a handful of holdings as permanent or near-permanent parts of the portfolio. Abel often reiterates these. These are positions that will likely be in the Berkshire Hathaway lineup long after Buffett has gone to the great stock market in the sky. All four are perfect ideas for those seeking to emulate the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio and investment strategy. Here are the qualities that these forever stocks share, and all are rated Buy at the top Wall Street firms we cover:

• Durable competitive advantages (moats)

• Simple, understandable businesses

• Shareholder-friendly management

• Ability to thrive across economic cycles

Why do we cover Berkshire Hathaway stocks?

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Few investors have the results and reputation that Buffett has garnered over the past 60 years. Though he has stepped away from the CEO chair, his impact and investment guidelines are likely to remain in place long after he is gone. While investing has evolved since Buffett took control of Berkshire Hathaway in 1965, buying good companies with products and services recognized worldwide and paying dividends will always remain a timeless approach and never go out of style.

American Express

American Express (NYSE: AXP) is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation specializing in payment cards. This stock has performed well over the past year, offering a dividend yield of 1.07%, and has been part of the Berkshire portfolio since 1993. The company offers products and services to customers worldwide, including consumers, small businesses, mid-sized companies, and large corporations.

Its segments include:

• U.S. Consumer Services, which offers travel and lifestyle services, as well as banking and non-card financing products.

• Commercial Services offers payment, expense management, banking, and non-card financing products.

• International Card Services provides services to international customers, including travel and lifestyle services, and manages certain international joint ventures and its loyalty coalition business.

• Global Merchant and Network Services 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, or 22.1% of American Express’s float, and 14.7% of the portfolio.

Truist Financial has a Buy rating with a $360 target price.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is the world’s largest beverage company, offering consumers more than 500 sparkling and still brands, and it pays a dependable 2.66% dividend. Berkshire Hathaway owns 400 million shares, which is 9.3% of the float and 9.9% of the portfolio, and has held them since 1988.

With a 63-year streak of dividend increases and a business model built on recurring consumption, Coca-Cola combines defensive characteristics with exposure to emerging market growth. Organic revenue rose 5% in 2025, and the company anticipates 4% to 5% growth in 2026, with analysts projecting adjusted EPS growth of 7% to 8%.

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, it is the top 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 over 1.9 billion servings per day. The company also owns 16% of Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST), which continues to deliver strong financial results.

Jefferies has a Buy rating and a $90 target price.

Moody’s

Moody’s (NYSE: MCO) is a leading global provider of credit ratings, research, and risk analysis. While it isn’t one of Buffett’s more well-known stocks, he first bought shares in 2000, and the stock pays a slight 0.84% dividend. This integrated risk assessment firm operates in two segments.

The Moody’s Analytics segment develops a range of products and services that support the risk management activities of institutional participants in financial markets. It also offers:

• Credit Research

• Credit models and analytics

• Economics data and models

• Structured finance solutions

• Data sets on companies and securities

• SaaS solutions supporting banking and insurance

The Moody’s Investors Service segment publishes credit ratings. It provides assessment services for various debt obligations, programs, and facilities, and for entities that issue such obligations, including corporate, financial institution, and governmental obligations, as well as structured finance securities.

Evercore ISI has an Outperform rating with a $610 price objective.

Occidental Petroleum

After years of building this position, Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway are finally in the money on this company, which pays a 1.68% dividend. Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) is an international energy company with assets primarily in the United States, the Middle East, and North Africa. The company is an oil and gas producer in the United States, including the Permian and DJ basins and the offshore Gulf of America.

Berkshire Hathaway has a large position of 264,941,431 shares, representing 26.7% of the float and 5.6% of the portfolio.

Occidental’s oil and gas segment explores for, develops, and produces oil (including condensate), natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. The midstream and marketing segment purchases, markets, gathers, processes, transports, and stores oil (including condensate), NGLs, natural gas, carbon dioxide (CO2), and power. This segment provides flow assurance, maximizes the value of its oil and gas, and optimizes the company’s transportation and storage capacity. It also invests in entities that conduct similar activities, including low-carbon venture businesses.

A notable recent development was Occidental’s decision to sell its OxyChem subsidiary to Berkshire Hathaway, with the bulk of the proceeds expected to strengthen the company’s balance sheet and further concentrate its business on oil and gas. The move was especially interesting because Buffett had reportedly long been interested in OxyChem, and Berkshire now owns the business outright. Berkshire Hathaway completed its purchase of OxyChem on January 2, 2026, providing Occidental with $9.7 billion in cash to reduce debt and sharpen its focus on energy.

Mizuho has an Overweight rating and a $72 price objective.

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