Warren Buffett's Successor Is Praising These 4 'Forever Stocks'
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
That’s a saying that could very well be one of Warren Buffett’s folksy aphorisms. Although the legendary investor stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of last year, this philosophy appears to be the tactic new CEO Greg Abel is following for Berkshire Hathaway’s investments, as well.
Under Buffett’s 60-year tenure, Berkshire Hathaway went from a struggling textile mill to a sprawling, $1 trillion conglomerate operating companies as varied as See’s Candies and GEICO. Berkshire Hathaway’s $300 billion in stock holdings are also diverse, although Buffett was famously selective about the company’s investments.
Over the years, the stocks he bought and sold came to be regarded as bellwethers by investors.
Along with announcing 2025 earnings of $44.5 billion, Buffett successor Greg Abel wrote in his first shareholder letter — released Saturday — that Buffett’s preference to invest in companies for the long haul would be continued.
“A large portion of our portfolio is concentrated in a small number of American companies,” he wrote. At the top of that list? Apple, American Express, Coca-Cola and financial research and data firm Moody’s.
He wrote that these four were “businesses we understand well, have a high regard for their leaders, and expect will compound over decades,” indicating that Berkshire did not plan to sell absent any “fundamental changes” at any of the companies.
This buy-and-hold strategy was a hallmark of Buffett’s investing strategy, and — according to some — a big reason for his legendary acumen.
Berkshire's balance sheet includes investments of roughly $62 billion in Apple, $56 billion in Amex, $28 billion in Coke and $12.5 billion in Moody's. Collectively, these investments comprise more than half the value of the company's stock portfolio.
Abel’s choice of words has prompted Wall Street to speculate that Berkshire doesn’t plan on any more significant reduction in its Apple holdings. Its current $61.9 billion stake is a fraction of what the company held just a few years ago. Buffett began selling off the tech titan in 2023, made waves the following year with an $80 billion divestiture and continued to shed shares up until his departure last year.
Buffett famously quipped, “Our favorite holding period is forever” for Berkshire's most-prized stock holdings. Amex, Coke and Moody’s have been considered “forever stocks” by Buffett watchers due to the company’s decades-long stake in each. (He initially bought Coca-Cola stock in 1988.)
Another characteristic that made Buffett beloved by retail investors and Wall Street alike was his avowed plain-spokenness. Abel’s letter indicated that Berkshire’s “voice” will remain the same — notably, when he called out one other stock in its portfolio.
“Our investment in Kraft Heinz has been disappointing,” he said bluntly, characterizing the company’s return “well short of adequate.”
And market observers also noticed something else in Abel's letter: Bank of America and Chevron, two other companies in which Berkshire has big stakes, didn’t get a shout-out.
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