This marks the first complete quarterly portfolio report since Buffett stepped down as CEO at the end of last year and Greg Abel officially took over. Markets had already expected portfolio adjustments in the “post-Buffett era,” but the scale of the changes revealed in this report still exceeded the expectations of most analysts.

First, looking at the overall picture. As of March 31, Berkshire’s US equity portfolio was valued at approximately US$263.1 billion, down around US$10.9 billion from US$274 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025. During the first quarter, Berkshire established positions in three new stocks, increased holdings in four companies, fully exited 16 positions, and reduced stakes in six others, while the total number of holdings declined from 42 to 29. The concentration of the top ten holdings further increased from around 88% in the previous quarter to 90.72%, making the portfolio structure even more streamlined.

Looking at capital flows, Berkshire purchased approximately US$16 billion worth of stocks during the quarter while selling around US$24.1 billion, resulting in net sales of approximately US$8.15 billion. Berkshire has now been a net seller of US equities for 14 consecutive quarters, with cumulative net sales exceeding US$200 billion, while cash reserves simultaneously climbed to a record high of US$397.38 billion. Meanwhile, the company repurchased only US$234 million worth of its own shares. Compared with nearly US$400 billion in cash reserves, management clearly believes current stock valuations are not cheap. Below is a summary of Berkshire’s portfolio changes:

New Positions: Returning to Airline Stocks After Six Years

In terms of new positions, Berkshire purchased approximately 39.8 million shares of Delta Air Lines during the first quarter, with the position valued at roughly US$2.65 billion. Immediately after being established, Delta became Berkshire’s 14th-largest holding. This marks Berkshire’s first return to airline stocks since fully exiting the four major US airlines during the pandemic in 2020. Delta shares rose approximately 2.7% in after-hours trading following the disclosure. Other newly established positions included approximately 4 million shares of Macy’s, valued at around US$55 million, as well as Alphabet Class C shares worth roughly US$1 billion.

The return to airline stocks has been interpreted by markets as a renewed sign of optimism toward the outlook for US consumer spending and business travel. Delta continues to maintain relatively strong profitability among US airlines, while trading at only around 11 times earnings. For Berkshire, which favors companies with stable cash flow, the stock offers a certain margin of safety.

Increased Holdings: Google Emerges as the Biggest Winner

The most significant increase during the quarter centered on Alphabet. In the first quarter, Berkshire added more than 36.4 million Alphabet Class A shares, increasing its holdings by approximately 204% compared with the end of last year’s fourth quarter. The position’s market value climbed to US$15.6 billion, lifting Alphabet from Berkshire’s tenth-largest holding to seventh place. Including the newly added Alphabet Class C shares, Berkshire’s total Google position reached approximately US$16.6 billion, becoming the most significant incremental addition within the portfolio. In addition, Berkshire increased its holdings in The New York Times by approximately 10 million shares and modestly added to homebuilder Lennar.

The sharp increase in Google holdings, combined with Abel’s statement at the shareholder meeting that “AI must create real business value,” has led markets to believe Berkshire’s recognition of AI infrastructure platforms is deepening. Analysts pointed out that Google not only possesses world-leading large-model AI capabilities, but also controls key gateways including cloud computing, search, advertising, and AI infrastructure. Compared with Apple’s stronger focus on consumer electronics, Google is increasingly viewed as a core infrastructure platform for the AI era.

Complete Exits: Fully Selling Out of 16 Companies

During the first quarter, Berkshire fully exited 16 companies, marking the largest wave of liquidations in recent years. The most closely watched exit was Amazon — Berkshire sold all approximately 2.276 million Amazon shares, fully exiting a position it had held for nearly seven years. When Berkshire initially built the Amazon position in the second quarter of 2019, Buffett famously admitted that failing to buy Amazon earlier had been “stupid.” In the fourth quarter of last year, Berkshire had already reduced its Amazon holdings by more than 77%, before fully liquidating the remaining shares in Q1.

Payment giants Visa and Mastercard were also fully sold. Berkshire exited approximately US$2.91 billion worth of Visa shares and roughly US$2.28 billion worth of Mastercard shares. UnitedHealth, Aon, Domino’s Pizza, Pool Corp, and Charter Communications were also among the companies fully exited.

Reduced Holdings: Trimming Chevron at High Levels, Slight Reduction in Bank of America

On the reduction side, the largest single move involved Chevron. During the first quarter, Berkshire reduced approximately 45.78 million Chevron shares, cutting the position by 35%, equivalent to roughly US$2.4 billion. At quarter-end, the remaining Chevron stake was valued at approximately US$17.457 billion. Chevron shares reached record highs in March amid US-Iran tensions and surging oil prices, meaning Berkshire likely reduced the position near peak levels. Berkshire originally established its Chevron position around the US$65 range in 2020 and significantly increased holdings around US$124 in 2022, meaning the current reduction locks in substantial gains relative to cost basis.

Berkshire also reduced its Bank of America holdings by approximately 3.67 million shares, leaving a remaining position valued at around US$25 billion. Smaller reductions were also made in DaVita, Constellation Brands, Nucor, and several other companies.

Top Ten Holdings: Apple Stops Shrinking, Google Moves Higher

At the end of the first quarter, Berkshire’s top ten holdings and portfolio weightings were: Apple 21.99%, American Express 17.43%, Coca-Cola 11.56%, Bank of America 9.52%, Chevron 6.64%, Occidental Petroleum 6.55%, Alphabet A 5.93%, Chubb 4.24%, Moody’s 4.09%, and Kraft Heinz 2.78%.

Apple remains Berkshire’s undisputed largest holding. However, notably, Berkshire kept its Apple holdings unchanged for the first time after reducing the position for three consecutive quarters, with the stake remaining valued at approximately US$57.8 billion. Meanwhile, Coca-Cola rose from Berkshire’s fourth-largest holding in the previous quarter to third place.

Conclusion

Overall, Greg Abel has not overturned Buffett’s investment framework. Core holdings remain largely unchanged, Apple selling has stopped, and the top five holdings remain broadly stable. However, Abel has introduced a more “minimalist” style: the portfolio has been aggressively streamlined, peripheral positions have largely been eliminated, portfolio concentration has risen above 90%, and Berkshire is no longer relying solely on Apple within the technology sector, instead significantly increasing its Google exposure as a new growth driver.

With an equity portfolio valued at US$263.1 billion and cash reserves of approximately US$397.4 billion, Berkshire’s stock allocation currently accounts for only around 40% of total assets, remaining at a relatively low historical level. When and how this enormous cash reserve will eventually be redeployed may become the next major topic worth watching in the Greg Abel era.