Berkshire Hathaway has aggressively expanded its footprint in the tech sector, boosting its stake in Alphabet by a staggering 83 percent during what marks its most active stock buying spree in several years. Under the leadership of new CEO Greg Abel, the conglomerate grew its holdings in the parent company of Google to approximately 106 million shares, representing a valuation of nearly 38 billion dollars by the end of June. This massive accumulation was achieved through a combination of a 10 billion dollar private placement at a discounted rate and additional open market purchases.
This pivot toward Big Tech is particularly notable given Warren Buffett’s historical reluctance to embrace technology companies throughout his storied career. While Buffett now serves as chairman rather than CEO, he previously indicated that the initial decision to move into Alphabet was his own. Together with Abel, they have positioned Alphabet as the third largest holding in their U.S. portfolio, trailing only Apple and American Express. The move aligns with broader market sentiment that sees the advertising giant as a primary beneficiary of the current artificial intelligence boom.
Beyond the tech surge, Berkshire remained highly active across various sectors last quarter. The firm ramped up its investment in Delta Air Lines by 44 percent and initiated new positions in homebuilder D. R. Horton while adding to stakes in Macy’s and Lennar. Conversely, the company scaled back some of its bets, cutting holdings in Capital One and Nucor and trimming positions in Kroger and Bank of America. These shifts signal a strategic rebalancing as the firm seeks growth opportunities outside its traditional staples like Coca Cola and Geico.
Overall spending reflected a dramatic change in strategy after fourteen consecutive quarters of being a net seller. Berkshire invested 23.5 billion dollars into stocks while selling just 3.7 billion, marking its largest quarterly outlay since 2022. When combined with significant share buybacks, these moves slightly reduced Berkshire’s mountainous cash reserve from 380 billion to 365 billion dollars. For years, this cash pile had grown because Buffett struggled to find attractive valuations in an expensive market, suggesting that under Abel’s operational lead, the firm is finally finding value once again.