Berkshire Hathaway

Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company. It owns insurance companies such as GEICO, the BNSF railroad, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and many manufacturing, service and retail businesses. These include OxyChem, which it bought on January 2, 2026, and the homebuilder Taylor Morrison, which it bought on July 24, 2026. It also owns a large portfolio of stocks: at September 30, 2026, the five largest holdings were Alphabet, American Express, Apple, Bank of America and Coca-Cola.

Insurance float, the money it holds for future claims, was about $178.5 billion. Greg Abel became CEO on January 1, 2026, and Howard G. Buffett became chairman on September 18, 2026. One Class A share equals 1,500 Class B shares.

Berkshire trades at a premium because investors pay for safety: a very strong balance sheet, a group of steady businesses and the option to use a very large cash balance when other buyers cannot. Warren Buffett left the CEO role and then the chair, so investors now trust Greg Abel with that cash. Three things press on earnings. First, cash and Treasury bills of about $352 billion, after unsettled purchases, earn less as interest rates fall: insurance investment income fell 14% in Q3 2026.

Second, insurance underwriting profit fell 43% in Q3 2026 from a strong year earlier. Third, investors wait to see how Greg Abel uses the cash. For the premium to be earned, three things must be true. Abel must put the cash to work at good returns, through buybacks such as the $9.6 billion of Q3 2026 and purchases such as OxyChem and Taylor Morrison.

BNSF, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and the manufacturing, service and retail group must keep growing their earnings, as they did in Q3 2026. PacifiCorp's wildfire claims must keep falling. The full-year 2026 report and the annual letter, expected in late February 2027, are the next test. Because Berkshire changes slowly, the evidence arrives over several years, and the premium can get smaller if the cash stays idle as interest rates fall.

1. Feb 27, 2027 · est.Pending

   Full-year 2026 results and annual letterHigher operating earnings at BNSF, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and the manufacturing group, with continued buybacks or a large purchase at a fair price, pass; falling earnings and an idle cash pile fail.
2. May 2027 · est.Pending

   2027 annual meetingA clear plan from Greg Abel for the use of cash and for buybacks passes; no change in the cash pile and no plan fails.

Every passed and failed checkpoint across all picks

• November 7, 2026Berkshire reported Q3 2026 results. Operating earnings fell 6% to $12.7 billion. Underwriting profit fell to $1.35 billion from $2.37 billion, and insurance investment income fell to $2.73 billion from $3.18 billion. BNSF earned $1.73 billion, up 19%, Berkshire Hathaway Energy earned $1.61 billion, up 8%, and manufacturing, service and retailing earned $4.04 billion, up 12%. Berkshire bought back about $9.6 billion of its shares in the quarter and $14.4 billion in the first nine months. Float was about $178.5 billion.
• September 18, 2026Warren Buffett became Chairman Emeritus and stayed a director. The board elected Howard G. Buffett, a director since 1993, as chairman. Susan Decker stays lead independent director.
• August 8, 2026Berkshire reported Q2 2026 results. Operating earnings rose 16% to $12.98 billion, and Berkshire bought back about $4.5 billion of its shares.

Last earnings

November 9, 2026 (8-K on sec.gov)

Next earnings

Expected about February 27, 2027. The company has not confirmed the date.

• 8-KEarnings releaseFiled November 9, 2026 · brka-20261107
• 10-QQuarterly report for the period ended Sep 30, 2026Filed November 9, 2026 · brka-20260930
• 8-KEarnings releaseFiled August 11, 2026 · Read it on sec.gov
• 10-QQuarterly report for the period ended Jun 30, 2026Filed August 10, 2026 · brka-20260630
• 8-KEarnings release and Change of directors or officersFiled May 7, 2026 · Read it on sec.gov
• 10-QQuarterly report for the period ended Mar 31, 2026Filed May 4, 2026 · brka-20260331
• 8-KOther company newsFiled April 16, 2026 · Read it on sec.gov
• 8-KOther company newsFiled March 5, 2026 · Read it on sec.gov
• 8-KEarnings releaseFiled March 2, 2026 · Read it on sec.gov
• 10-KAnnual report for the period ended Dec 31, 2025Filed March 2, 2026 · brka-20251231

Every filing on SEC EDGAR (CIK 1067983)

• Berkshire holds about $352 billion of cash and Treasury bills after unsettled purchases. Lower interest rates cut this income: insurance investment income fell 14% in Q3 2026. Large purchases at high prices can also lower returns.
• Insurance results move with disasters. Berkshire had no significant catastrophe losses in the first nine months of 2026, so a large hurricane, wildfire or earthquake can cut underwriting profit sharply.
• PacifiCorp, a Berkshire Hathaway Energy utility, recorded about $2.85 billion of estimated losses for the 2020 and 2022 wildfires and still owed about $566 million at September 30, 2026. New fires or court rulings can add losses.
• Greg Abel now leads capital allocation without Warren Buffett as CEO or chairman. Investors must trust a new team with very large sums.
• The stock portfolio is concentrated: the five largest holdings were 65% of its fair value at September 30, 2026. The Kraft Heinz stake had a carrying value $1.4 billion above its fair value.

Berkshire holds much more cash and short-term Treasury bills than debt. At September 30, 2026, the insurance and other businesses had cash of $36.0 billion and Treasury bills of $336.7 billion, of which $20.5 billion were unsettled purchases that Berkshire paid soon after. Read more

Berkshire Hathaway does not pay a dividend.

Source: company filings and market data, read on November 9, 2026. The ex-dividend date is the first day a buyer no longer gets the next payment.