Warren Buffett's stock picks aren't what they used to be. Indeed, the Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) equity portfolio has changed dramatically over the past few years. Although old-guard favorites such as American Express (AXP) and Coca-Cola (KO) still form the core of the portfolio, Buffett & Co. have taken a shine to names such as Apple (AAPL) and Amazon.com (AMZN), and even to lesser-known firms such as Snowflake (SNOW) and Nu Holdings (NU).
One thing that hasn't changed, however, is Buffett's preference for maintaining a highly concentrated portfolio. Excluding the holding company's Japanese brokerage stocks, Apple accounts for more than 40% of Berkshire's equity portfolio. Berkshire's top five U.S. equity holdings comprise more than three-quarters of its value, while the top 10 account for more than 90%.
But whether we're talking about Berkshire's biggest bets or the scores of stocks it maintains at the margins, Buffett's focus shifted after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Buffett owned airline stocks at the start of 2020; now he holds none. Banks were aces among Buffett stocks to begin 2020; Berkshire spent the past few years kicking most of them to the curb. And it seems like only yesterday that Buffett was an enthusiastic buyer of select pharmaceutical names. Today, most of those positions have been closed out too.
If you want to know which stocks Warren Buffett is buying and selling, look no further than the Berkshire Hathaway equity portfolio. (And as always, remember: A number of these stocks were actually picked by co-portfolio managers Todd Combs and Ted Weschler.)
Price, share totals and other data as of March 31, 2024. Sources: Berkshire Hathaway’s SEC Form 13F filed May 15, 2024, for the reporting period ended March 31, 2024; and WhaleWisdom.
