Berkshire Hathaway

Berkshire Hathaway is an American holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, led by billionaire investor Warren Buffett. The company, categorized under the financials sector and reinsurance industry, owns dozens of businesses in various sectors and industries, including insurance, utilities, energy, transportation, manufacturing, and retail.

Berkshire also holds significant investments in leading companies such as Apple (AAPL), Bank of America (BAC), and the Coca-Cola Company (KO).

Renowned for serving as an investment conduit for Buffett and his longtime business partner Charles “Charlie” Munger, who died in November 2023, Berkshire Hathaway is also notable for having the highest-valued stock in the United States—its Class A shares exceeded $800,000 apiece in 2025.

Leadership succession

In May 2025, Buffett announced that Berkshire Vice Chairman Greg Abel would take over as chief executive officer by the end of the year. Although Buffett indicated he would remain involved in some capacity, Abel is to assume day-to-day executive leadership. The board had previously named Abel as Buffett’s successor in 2021.

Portfolio strategy and investment structure

Berkshire Hathaway’s business model blends full ownership of subsidiaries with substantial investments in publicly traded companies. In some cases, it acquires businesses outright, gaining complete control over management and operations—though Buffett is known for granting significant autonomy to company leaders. In others, Berkshire takes large stakes in public companies without seeking control, aiming instead for long-term value.

Full ownership

Berkshire has acquired more than 60 companies outright across insurance, transportation, retail, manufacturing, and energy. Major subsidiaries include GEICO, Dairy Queen, and BNSF Railway.

Controlling or majority stakes

In some cases, Berkshire holds enough shares to exert significant influence over a company’s decisions without full ownership. Examples include American Express (AXP) and, historically, Kraft Heinz (KHC).

Noncontrolling stakes

Berkshire also holds large minority positions in major public companies. These investments reflect Buffett’s view that strong businesses are worth owning even without operational control.

• The Coca-Cola Company. Berkshire began buying shares in 1988 and has held 400 million shares since 1989. Its stake has ranged from 6% to 10% depending on Coca-Cola’s total shares outstanding. As of 2025, it represents about 9%.
• Apple. First acquired in 2016, Apple became Berkshire’s largest holding by market value. It sold off a major stake in 2024 and, as of 2025, owns about 300 million shares, roughly 2% of the company.
• Kraft Heinz. As of 2025, Berkshire’s stake in the global food manufacturer, created by the 2015 merger of Kraft and Heinz, stood at 27%, down from 34% in 2023. The company holds about 325 million shares.

1888–1962: The early years

Berkshire Hathaway traces its history back to two Massachusetts textile firms: Hathaway Manufacturing Company (incorporated in 1888) and Berkshire Cotton Manufacturing Company (incorporated in 1889). Berkshire Cotton became Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates in 1929 and merged with Hathaway to form Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., in 1955.

After World War I, the textile sector in New England witnessed a significant downturn, briefly interrupted following the Great Depression. A year after its incorporation, Berkshire Hathaway had 14 plants and more than 10,000 employees; the newly merged company became a behemoth in the New England textile industry.

Despite its impressive scale and production capacity, Berkshire Hathaway continued to incur losses over the next seven years. Its net worth plummeted by 37%. Nine of its plants were shut down during this period. The proceeds from the liquidations were used for share buybacks, which caught Buffett’s attention. He believed the company’s stock was trading at a discount relative to its productive potential.

1962–1965: Buffett begins accumulating a majority stake

Buffett Partnership Limited (BPL), an investment group led by Buffett, began purchasing shares of Berkshire Hathaway in 1962 at $7.50 a share, a significant discount compared to the company’s estimated book value of $20.20 and per-share working capital of $10.25. Amid continuing plant closures and share repurchases, Buffett began aggressively acquiring Berkshire stock, allowing him to take control of the company in 1965.

1965–present: From textile company to conglomerate

Despite enjoying a period of growth in the textile business in the two years following Buffett’s takeover, Berkshire’s net worth was still down 64% from 1955. (Its textile business continued to struggle over the next two decades.)

Insurance and diversification

Buffett began shifting Berkshire’s business strategy, laying the foundation for its investment and acquisition operations. By 1985, the year in which he liquidated the company’s textile operations, Berkshire had already evolved into a well-established holding company.

Buffett had long been a proponent of value investing, but Berkshire’s aggressive value investing strategy accelerated once Munger joined the firm as vice chairman in 1978—a position he would hold for nearly 46 years until his passing in November 2023. Together, Buffett and Munger built Berkshire by buying stock in undervalued companies, acquiring many of those businesses, and then allowing considerable autonomy to the managers of the newly acquired subsidiaries and businesses in which Berkshire held a majority and minority stake.

A significant portion of Berkshire’s portfolio has always been insurance companies. National Indemnity Company and National Fire & Marine Insurance Company (now a part of National Indemnity) were both purchased in 1967, followed by GEICO in 1996 and General Reinsurance in 1998.

Nevertheless, Berkshire strived for diversification through its various acquisitions. For instance, it acquired Scott Fetzer Company (1986), owner of reference and educational publisher World Book; Benjamin Moore (2000), maker of paint; and Fruit of the Loom (2002), clothing and undergarment maker.

The purchase of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation (2010), owner of BNSF Railway, for about $44 billion was the largest deal in the company’s history. Though its acquisitions span various sectors, Berkshire has normally set its sights on mature rather than emerging industries.

The Berkshire Hathaway model

Under the leadership of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, Berkshire Hathaway’s model of buying established yet undervalued businesses and maintaining significant stakes in leading companies has proved successful over the decades, reflecting the pair’s renowned value investing philosophy. This disciplined approach helped shape Berkshire into one of the most respected and influential conglomerates in American corporate history.