| Position exited entirely | Size |
|---|
| Visa | ~$2.91 billion |
| Mastercard | ~$2.28 billion |
| UnitedHealth | ~$1.66 billion |
| Domino’s Pizza | ~$1.40 billion |
| Aon | ~$1.27 billion |
| Amazon | ~$525 million |
The easy explanation is that Warren Buffett no longer runs the show and Greg
Abel is arranging the portfolio his way. That is true and it is part of the story.
It does not explain the rest.
Why exiting Visa and Mastercard is the clue
Visa and Mastercard are essentially tollbooths on global consumption: every
payment anyone makes anywhere leaves them a slice. That is the kind of business
Berkshire historically bought in order never to sell.
If you exit both at once, the reasonable doubt is not about the companies.
It is about the consumer — about how much spending power is left
in the people making those payments. And there is a data point repeating across
many countries: households lean on credit more and defer more debt. Spending can
look strong right before it decelerates.
What it did not sell, which says more than what it did
Berkshire did not run from technology. In the same period it
opened a position in Alphabet, and months later reinforced that
bet with an additional $10 billion investment through a private
placement. It also closed the purchase of homebuilder
Taylor Morrison for around $6.8 billion.
So this is not "sell tech" or "leave the market". It is something more
specific: sell excellent but expensive businesses exposed to consumption, and buy
businesses with strong balance sheets, solid cash flow and the ability to handle a
worse environment.
The reading that remains
The strongest signal is not in what they sold. It is in the cash they chose to
keep. Berkshire does not look like it is betting on a collapse: it looks like it
is saying something more uncomfortable and more useful, which is that
risk is no longer being paid for properly.
Holding record cash costs money — it is return left on the table while the
market rises. Someone accepting that cost voluntarily is choosing the option to
buy cheaply later over the sure gain today. It is not pessimism: it is raising the
bar.
Meanwhile the underlying issues remain: high 10- and 30-year yields, pressure on
credit, pending commercial real estate refinancing, and energy costs rising with
data centre consumption.
Positions cited come from Berkshire
Hathaway's quarterly holdings report for the first quarter of 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How much cash does Berkshire Hathaway hold?
It closed the first quarter of 2026 with a record of roughly $380 billion in cash and Treasury bills. Holding that much cash costs money while the market rises, so accepting that cost is itself a statement about how well risk is being paid right now.
Which positions did Berkshire exit entirely?
Visa (about $2.91 billion), Mastercard ($2.28 billion), UnitedHealth ($1.66 billion), Domino’s Pizza ($1.4 billion), Aon ($1.27 billion) and Amazon ($525 million). Visa and Mastercard are effectively tollbooths on global consumption — the kind of business Berkshire bought never to sell.
Is Berkshire pulling out of technology?
No. In the same period it opened a position in Alphabet and months later added $10 billion through a private placement, on top of buying homebuilder Taylor Morrison for about $6.8 billion. The pattern is narrower: sell excellent but expensive businesses exposed to the consumer, and buy strong balance sheets.
