Berkshire (BRK.A.US, BRK.B.US) shares hit a record high; Buffett's successor wins market trust, splurging over $20 billion since taking office.

Berkshire Hathaway shares hit a record high on Wednesday, signaling growing investor confidence in Warren Buffett's successor, Greg Abel. Since formally taking over as chief executive on January 1 this year, Abel has gradually put the company's massive cash reserves to work, driving capital allocation through corporate acquisitions, technology stock investments and share buybacks, helping Berkshire move past the market doubts surrounding the management transition. In early trading on Wednesday, Berkshire's Class B shares (BRK.B.US) rose as much as 3.2% to $543.06, surpassing the all-time high of $543.02 set on May 2, 2025. Meanwhile, the relatively less liquid Class A shares (BRK.A.US) also set a new record, touching an intraday high of $814,027.80. Over the past year, Berkshire's Class A shares have gained 9.8% cumulatively, while the Class B shares have risen about 10%. For Berkshire, this record share price is particularly significant. As one of the world's most influential investors, Warren Buffett has long been the central figure behind the company's investment philosophy and market appeal, and the management transition following his retirement had raised investor concerns about the company's future. On May 3, 2025, Berkshire announced its management succession plan, under which Abel would succeed Buffett as chief executive in early 2026. After the announcement, Berkshire's shares weakened overall for the remainder of 2025, falling 1.9% cumulatively, while the S&P 500 rose 21% over the same period, a marked divergence in performance. That gap is now gradually narrowing. Over the past year, Berkshire's Class B shares have risen about 10%, while the S&P 500 has gained 15% over the same period. Although Berkshire still lags the broader market, market expectations for its future have improved compared with earlier performance. One of the most notable changes since Abel took office is that Berkshire has begun to deploy its enormous cash reserves more aggressively. Since the start of this year, Berkshire has taken several major capital allocation actions, including spending $6.8 billion to acquire U.S. homebuilder Taylor Morrison Home, investing $10 billion in Alphabet Inc. Class C parent Alphabet (GOOGL.US), and repurchasing more than $4.5 billion of Berkshire stock. These three investments and buyback actions involve a total of more than $21.3 billion, showing that Abel is deploying capital through multiple channels including acquisitions, equity investments and buybacks. Among them, the acquisition of Taylor Morrison Home further expands Berkshire's footprint in the U.S. homebuilding sector, while the $10 billion investment in Alphabet reflects the company's capital allocation moves in the technology industry. At the same time, Berkshire's renewed emphasis on share buybacks also indicates the company's willingness to use part of its funds to invest in its own stock and create long-term value for shareholders. These moves have drawn market attention because Berkshire had long accumulated an enormous cash reserve, and how to find attractive investment opportunities while maintaining financial soundness has been an important issue for investors. After Abel took over as chief executive, investors not only need to assess his ability to manage Berkshire's vast business empire, but also want to understand how the company will carry forward its capital allocation strategy after the Buffett era. Judging from recent share price performance, the market appears to be gradually endorsing Abel's direction. Berkshire's Class B shares breaking through their previous record high means the stock has recovered the ground lost since the management transition was announced. However, whether Berkshire can continue to narrow its performance gap with the S&P 500 still depends on the profitability of its core businesses, the performance of its investment portfolio and the capital allocation efficiency of the new management going forward. Next, investors will have an important window to gauge Berkshire's operating performance under Abel. According to the current schedule, Berkshire is expected to report third-quarter 2026 results on November 7. At that time, the market will focus on the operating conditions of the company's insurance, railroad, energy and other businesses, as well as changes in cash reserves, share buybacks and new investments and other capital allocation developments.