Warren Buffett has made a surprising move in his investments. According to the latest regulatory filing, Berkshire Hathaway now owns an identical 400 million shares of both Apple and Coca-Cola. This coincidence has sparked speculation that Buffett may be done selling down his stake in Apple.
Professor David Kass from the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business noted that Buffett often favors round numbers when it comes to his investments, suggesting he may not plan to sell any additional shares of Apple. Just as Coca-Cola is a “permanent” holding for Buffett, so may be Apple.
Buffett has owned Coca-Cola since 1988 and has kept his stake steady at around 400 million shares for over 30 years. The legendary investor first discovered the iconic soft drink when he was just six years old and began buying it in bulk to resell in his neighborhood.
In a surprising move, Berkshire Hathaway slashed its Apple stake by half in the second quarter, bringing down Apple’s weighting in the portfolio from almost 50% to around 30%. However, with the holding now settled at this round number, it appears Buffett may be content with his position.
While some speculate that this could simply be a coincidence, others believe Buffett is done selling down his stake in Apple. As he said during Berkshire’s annual meeting in May, “We own Coca-Cola, which is a wonderful business… And we own Apple, which is an even better business, and we will own [them] unless something really extraordinary happens.”
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/15/warren-buffett-did-something-curious-with-his-apple-stock-holding.html