What stocks has Warren Buffett bought and sold lately?
Each quarter, all fund managers with at least $100 million in assets must publicly disclose their stock holdings to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission via form 13F, giving investors a rare peek behind the curtain of some of the world’s largest and most successful hedge funds.
One of the most anticipated quarterly filings comes from Buffett and his $1 trillion company Berkshire Hathaway (ticker: BRK.A, BRK.B). Here’s a look at 10 changes the Oracle of Omaha made to Berkshire’s portfolio in the third quarter.
Sold: Apple Inc. (AAPL)
The biggest change Buffett made to Berkshire’s portfolio in the third quarter was cutting his largest stock position by 25%. In the second quarter, Berkshire sold 389.3 million shares of Apple stock, bringing its total number of shares down to an even 400 million. In the third quarter, Berkshire sold another 100 million shares of Apple. Buffett has not given a public explanation for the Apple sale. He first invested in Apple back in the first quarter of 2016. Even after the latest Apple sale, Berkshire’s $69.9 billion remaining Apple stake is its largest public stock holding.
Sold: Bank of America Corp. (BAC)
In filings separate from Berkshire’s quarterly 13F, Buffett revealed that he has continued to sell another top holding in recent weeks: Bank of America. Beginning in August, Berkshire filed a series of filings disclosing sales of Bank of America stock. As of Oct. 15, Berkshire still held more than 766.3 million shares of BAC stock worth about $32.2 billion. Buffett first invested in Bank of America back in 2011 during the European debt crisis, but he has exited or dialed back exposure to several bank stocks in recent years. Bank of America is now Berkshire’s third-largest holding.
Bought: Domino’s Pizza Inc. (DPZ)
Domino’s Pizza is the world’s largest pizza company, operating in more than 90 international markets that are served by more than 20,900 Domino’s stores. Most quarters, Buffett takes at least one or two surprising new stakes. In the third quarter, Domino’s was his largest brand new stake. Domino’s appears to be a classic Buffett value investment. The stock is trading at a reasonable 27.5 times forward earnings. It also has a popular, well-established brand in the restaurant business and a healthy balance sheet. Berkshire has acquired 1.27 million shares of Domino’s stock worth $549.3 million.
Sold: Floor & Decor Holdings Inc. (FND)
Floor & Decor is a specialty retailer of flooring and related accessories. Buffett first invested in Floor & Decor in the third quarter of 2021. The stock has been a major disappointment for Buffett, down roughly 12% overall. Unfortunately, the company has given investors few reasons for optimism. Revenue growth has essentially been flat and net income has consistently declined year over year in the past four quarters. Part of Buffett’s success has been his ability to recognize mistakes and cut losses. In the third quarter, Berkshire dumped all of its nearly 4 million shares of FND stock, completely exiting its investment.
Sold: Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR)
In the third quarter, Buffett cut his stake in U.S. cable TV and broadband communications services company Charter Communications by more than 1 million shares, reducing his total stake size by 26%. Buffett first invested in Charter Communications back in the second quarter of 2014. The stock has struggled in the past three years, dropping more than 42%. However, Buffett still holds more than 2.8 million shares of Charter worth more than $914 million. Overall, Charter has been a lackluster investment for Buffett. The stock has underperformed the total return of the S&P 500 since mid-2014.
Sold: Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA)
Ulta Beauty is one of the largest U.S. beauty retailers, providing salon services and selling fragrance, cosmetic, skin care and hair care products. In the second quarter, Ulta was Buffett’s largest brand new stake. Despite the stock outperforming the S&P 500 from mid-August to mid-November Buffett must have seen something he didn’t like. Only one quarter after he took the market by surprise by taking a sizable new stake in Ulta, Buffett sold 665,903 shares of Ulta stock in the third quarter. He has now reduced his stake in the beauty company by 96.5%.
Sold: Nu Holdings Ltd. (NU)
Brazilian digital bank Nubank completed its initial public offering (IPO) in December 2021, but Berkshire first invested $500 million in the company as part of a private fundraising round in June 2021. Buffett has historically been leery of investing in IPOs, but Berkshire reportedly bought nearly 30 million shares of Nubank during its IPO. Nearly three years later, NU stock is trading about 56% above its IPO price of $9 per share. In the third quarter, Buffett reduced his stake in NU by nearly 20%. Berkshire still holds 86.4 million shares of NU stock worth about $1.2 billion.
Bought: Pool Corp. (POOL)
Another brand new holding Berkshire disclosed in the third quarter is swimming pool and backyard equipment company Pool, which also produces and distributes irrigation products. Buffett has always appreciated consistent, long-term performance, and Pool has been one of the best-performing stocks in the entire market over the past 30 years. In fact, Pool shares generated an incredible total return of more than 56,000% in the 30 years following its 1993 IPO. Buffett obviously sees more upside ahead, and Berkshire has purchased more than 404,000 shares of POOL stock worth about $152.2 million.
Sold: Capital One Financial Corp. (COF)
Capital One Financial is a diversified financial services holding company that provides consumer and commercial banking products and is one of the largest credit card issuers. Buffett also holds large stakes in Visa Inc. (V), Mastercard Inc. (MA) and American Express Co. (AXP), but he reduced his stake in Capital One by about 7.3% in the third quarter. Berkshire first bought Capital One shares in the first quarter of 2023, and the stock’s total return has significantly outpaced the S&P 500’s since the beginning of 2023. Berkshire still owns 9.1 million shares of COF stock worth about $1.4 billion.
Bought: Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (SIRI)
Buffett first invested in Liberty Media in 2016, and the company has radically restructured its business in recent years. Liberty distributed shares of Liberty Live Group Series C (LLYVK), Liberty Live Group Series A (LLYVA) and Atlanta Braves Holdings Inc. (BATRK) to existing Liberty Media investors in 2023. In the third quarter of 2024, Liberty redeemed tracking stocks Liberty SiriusXM (LSXMA, LSXMB, LSXMK) for shares of new Sirius XM. Following the combination deal, Buffett has also disclosed additional purchases of SIRI. As of Oct. 31, Berkshire holds 112.5 million shares of SIRI stock worth about $3 billion.