For 14 consecutive quarters, Berkshire Hathaway sold more stocks than it bought, letting cash accumulate while critics argued the conglomerate had grown too cautious to deploy its own firepower. That streak ended in the second quarter of 2026.
Under new chief executive Greg Abel, who succeeded Warren Buffett at the start of the year after Buffett's roughly 60-year tenure, Berkshire spent $23.5 billion on stocks in Q2 while selling only $3.7 billion — a net purchase of nearly $20 billion, according to Business Insider Africa. The cash pile fell from a record $397.4 billion at the end of Q1 to $365.5 billion by the end of Q2, as capital flowed into equities, acquisitions, and $4.5 billion in share buybacks.
The centrepiece of the pivot is Alphabet, the parent company of Google. Berkshire now holds approximately 106 million Alphabet shares worth roughly $37.8 to $37.9 billion, making it the conglomerate's third-largest US-listed equity position, behind only Apple and American Express, according to Bloomberg.
That position was built in two bursts. In Q1 2026, Berkshire more than tripled its Alphabet holding to roughly 58 million shares worth nearly $17 billion, up from 17.8 million shares worth $5.6 billion at the end of 2025, according to the Associated Press. Then in June, Berkshire committed $10 billion to a private placement in Alphabet, part of the technology company's $80 billion equity fundraising to finance artificial intelligence infrastructure, Reuters reported. Berkshire also bought an additional roughly 19.6 million shares on the open market during Q2, pushing its Alphabet share count up 83% over the quarter, CNBC reported.
Buffett, now serving as Berkshire's chairman, told CNBC he had driven the Alphabet conviction himself, with Abel's backing.
The airline bet is equally pointed. Berkshire sold all its airline positions at the start of the pandemic; it is now back. The conglomerate initiated a new stake in Delta Air Lines in Q1 2026, buying nearly 40 million shares for approximately $2.65 billion, according to the Associated Press. By the end of Q2, after Berkshire added 17.5 million shares during the quarter, the position had grown 44% to 57.3 million shares valued at approximately $5.4 billion, Bloomberg reported.
The housing sector received attention too. Berkshire added to its Lennar stake, disclosed a small new position of 3,600 shares in D.R. Horton, and completed its acquisition of homebuilder Taylor Morrison Home Corp for approximately $6.8 billion in equity value, according to CNBC.
The Q2 buying stands in contrast to what preceded it. In Q1 2026, Berkshire was still a net seller, spending $15.94 billion but selling $24.09 billion, and shedding large positions in Amazon, UnitedHealth Group, Visa, Mastercard, Domino's Pizza, Aon, and Pool Corp, Reuters reported. The portfolio shrank from roughly 40 equity positions to 26 under Abel, while total equity portfolio value fell from approximately $274 billion to $263 billion during Q1, according to Crypto Briefing.
In Q2, Berkshire continued trimming the edges while adding at the core. It roughly halved its stakes in Capital One and Nucor, cut its Bank of America and Kroger holdings, and closed its Constellation Brands position, Business Insider Africa reported. The shape that results is deliberate: fewer, larger bets concentrated in technology, airlines, and housing. The cash pile remains vast at $365.5 billion, but it is no longer at a record high and, for the first time in three and a half years, it is being put to work.
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