Shares of American multinational conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway have registered new highs since the departure of its chief executive and legendary investor Warren Buffett in May 2025. His successor, Greg Abel, in a short stint of one-plus year as the CEO, has already left his imprint by spending the conglomerate’s huge cash pile.
As of Tuesday (August 11), Berkshire’s stock value stood at USD 529.42, followed by Microsoft (USD 506.06), Google parent Alphabet (USD 357.52), Apple (USD 308.26) and Amazon (USD 278.09).
As per the venture’s quarterly reports, its cash pile fell to USD 364.7 billion on June 30 from a record USD 380.2 billion three months earlier. It has also repurchased USD 4.5 billion of its own stock and bought USD 23.5 billion of other stocks during the Q2, including a USD 10 billion investment in Alphabet.
The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate spent at least USD 10.1 billion more cash in July on stock buybacks and the acquisition of home builder Taylor Morrison.
Overall second-quarter operating profit rose 16% to USD 12.98 billion, as gains from railroad, service and some insurance businesses offset rising accident claims and advertising spending at the Geico car insurer.
Net income, on the other hand, more than doubled to USD 25.67 billion, including paper gains on investments such as Alphabet and Apple. Revenue grew 10%, following more than two years of largely stagnant growth.
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and UBS raised their share price forecasts for Berkshire, with KBW analyst Meyer Shields calling the quarter “very solid” and UBS analyst Brian Meredith saying the “meaningful” cash deployment reflected Berkshire’s disciplined capital allocation.
Shields still rates Berkshire “underperform” because of macroeconomic uncertainty and pricing pressures in property and casualty insurance. Meredith has rated Berkshire “buy.”
Berkshire, however, flagged “considerable uncertainty,” especially on macroeconomic and geopolitical fronts, with tariffs and wars impacting both the prospects of the conglomerate and the wider global economy.
The company has also identified falling demand at its consumer businesses including its 103 car and truck dealerships, Fruit of the Loom underwear and Forest River RVs.