Andrew Bary
Berkshire Hathaway stock fell sharply early Monday on news that CEO Warren Buffett will be stepping down at year-end after 60 years of leading the company.
Berkshire's Class A shares were down 5.3% to $766,470 while the Class B stock was off 5.3% to $511.17.
Buffett made a surprise announcement at the end of Berkshire's annual meeting that he would give up the CEO role at the end of 2025 and that he was recommending that Berkshire executive Greg Abel take the top job. That action was approved by the Berkshire board of directors on Sunday.
Buffett will remain chairman of the company, Berkshire Hathaway said early Monday. It had been unclear after Buffett's weekend announcement whether he would remain chairman. Buffett, 94, has led Berkshire since 1965. Buffett said at the meeting that he envisioned having an informal role at Berkshire, starting in 2026 as an advisor to Abel, when needed.
Abel is a Berkshire executive, vice chairman, and a director who heads the company's non-insurance operations. He has had that role since 2018.
The drop in the stock is understandable because Buffett is so closely associated with the company's success. The stock also has been very strong this year, gaining about 20% through Friday against a 3% decline in the S&P 500 index. Barron's wrote Sunday that the stock likely would move lower Monday.
Buffett said Saturday in a surprise announcement at the end of the Berkshire annual meeting in Omaha that he would be stepping down as CEO at year-end 2025 and that Abel would take over, pending board approval. The directors met Sunday and unanimously approved Abel's selection as CEO starting in 2026.
Write to Andrew Bary at andrew.bary@barrons.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 05, 2025 10:09 ET (14:09 GMT)
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