Story perspectives

Berkshire Invests $2.6 B in Delta, Expands Alphabet, Cuts Chevron

5/17/2026

Summary

Berkshire Expands Holdings

Berkshire Hathaway, now run by chief executive Greg Abel, invested $2.6 billion in Delta Air Lines and raised its Alphabet stake to about $23 billion in the Q1 filing released May 15, 2026.
Berkshire bought 36,403,656 Class A shares and 3,585,215 Class C shares of Alphabet, tripling its holding.
Berkshire cut its Chevron holding by 35 percent, exited Domino’s Pizza and a total of 16 positions, including six Japanese stocks.

Summary

Greg Abel Oversees

Greg Abel now oversees 94% of Berkshire Hathaway’s $288 billion equity portfolio.
Ted Weschler manages the remaining 6% of the equity holdings.
Todd Combs departed in December 2025 for JPMorgan Chase, with his holdings absorbed by Abel.
The filing does not specify which stocks each manager supervises.
Berkshire also runs dozens of businesses, including BNSF railroad, Geico insurance, and retail brands such as Brooks, Dairy Queen, Fruit of the Loom and See’s.

Summary

Berkshire Rebalances

Berkshire's shares have lagged the S&P 500 since Buffett announced his succession, increasing pressure on Vice Chair Ajit Abel.
Alphabet's price rose 38 % after its Q1 results, lifting Berkshire's holding to a $16.6 billion market value.
Berkshire cut its Chevron stake by 35 %—over $8 billion—after Q1, causing Chevron's share to fall 7.6 %.
Berkshire invested $59 million in Macy’s, sending the retailer's stock up 5.3 %.

Summary

Berkshire Reshapes Holdings

Berkshire Hathaway's cash reserve reached a record $397.38 billion in Q1.
It sold 45.78 million Chevron shares at $182.59 each, raising $8 billion and cutting its stake to 4.2%, its largest single sale.
Berkshire fully exited Amazon and UnitedHealth Group, trimmed Visa, Mastercard and Aon, and invested $2.65 billion in Delta—a 1% portfolio share and its 14th largest holding, marking its first airline investment since the 2020 pandemic.

History

Historical Context

During the 2008 financial crisis, which the IMF estimated caused over $2 trillion in global losses and prompted massive bailouts, Berkshire Hathaway under Warren Buffett amassed a $30 billion cash reserve and bought distressed assets such as a 5 % stake in Goldman Sachs. That liquidity foundation now powers 2026 moves like the $2.6 billion Delta purchase, illustrating how crisis-era capital fuels later portfolio reshapes.

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Berkshire Expands Holdings

Berkshire Hathaway, now run by chief executive Greg Abel, invested $2.6 billion in Delta Air Lines and raised its Alphabet stake to about $23 billion in the Q1 filing released May 15, 2026.
Berkshire bought 36,403,656 Class A shares and 3,585,215 Class C shares of Alphabet, tripling its holding.
Berkshire cut its Chevron holding by 35 percent, exited Domino’s Pizza and a total of 16 positions, including six Japanese stocks.

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