Long Term Stocks

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>>> 10 Stocks Warren Buffett Just Bought and Sold

Buffett made some new bets on housing construction to capitalize on rising demand.


US News Money

by Wayne Duggan

Aug. 16, 2023


https://money.usnews.com/investing/stock-market-news/slideshows/stocks-warren-buffett-just-bought


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 $781 billion company Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (ticker: BRK.A, BRK.B).

Here's a look at 10 of the biggest changes the Oracle of Omaha made to Berkshire's portfolio in the second quarter:


STOCK Q2 CHANGE IN SHARES % CHANGE

Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI) -34,781,660 -70%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) -9,287,475 -7%

McKesson Corp. (MCK) -2,289,864 Sold all

D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI) +5,969,714 New holding

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY) +12,422,073 +5%

General Motors Co. (GM) -18,000,000 -45%

NVR Inc. (NVR) +11,112 New holding

Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. (MMC) -404,911 Sold all

Lennar Corp. (LEN.B) +152,572 New holding

Vitesse Energy Inc. (VTS) -51,026 Sold all

Sold: Activision Blizzard Inc. (ATVI)


In 2022, Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) announced a $68.7 billion buyout deal for video game publisher Activision Blizzard at a price of $95 per share. Berkshire had purchased about $1 billion of Activision Blizzard shares at an average price of about $77 just weeks before the deal was announced. Antitrust regulators in the U.S. and U.K. have since sued to block the deal, and Buffett doesn't seem up for the legal battle. Berkshire reduced its position by 70% in the second quarter and now holds about 14.7 million shares of ATVI stock worth about $1.2 billion.

Sold: Chevron Corp. (CVX)

Buffett first invested in U.S. oil major Chevron in the fourth quarter of 2020. Buffett sold Chevron shares in the first and second quarters of 2021, but a global energy crisis and Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent crude oil prices soaring to 13-year highs in 2022. In response, Buffett added to his Chevron investment in the first three quarters of 2022 but pivoted again and has been dumping Chevron ever since. In the second quarter, Berkshire sold more than 9.2 million CVX shares, but it still holds 123.1 million shares worth about $19.4 billion.

Sold: McKesson Corp. (MCK)

McKesson is one of the largest distributors of pharmaceuticals and medical-surgical supplies in the U.S. Buffett was active in the health care sector early in the COVID-19 pandemic, taking large stakes in companies like AbbVie Inc. (ABBV), Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY), Pfizer Inc. (PFE) and Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK). However, Buffett quickly reversed course and sold off those positions. He took a new 2.9 million-share stake in MCK stock in the first quarter of 2022, but he began selling that stake just three quarters later. Berkshire sold all its remaining shares of MCK stock in the second quarter to completely exit the position.

Bought: D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI)

D.R. Horton is one of the largest publicly traded U.S. homebuilders by market capitalization, homes delivered and revenue. The biggest surprise from Buffett in the second quarter was his aggressive push into the homebuilder market, and D.R. Horton was his largest new stake. Homebuilder stocks are a classic Buffett value play, and D.R. Horton shares trade at just 9.2 times forward earnings. A lack of U.S. housing inventory has created an attractive environment for homebuilders. Berkshire has acquired roughly $6 million shares of DHI stock worth about $726.5 million.

Bought: Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY)

Occidental Petroleum is one of the largest U.S. oil and gas companies, and oil and gas stocks have been top market performers since the beginning of 2022. Buffett has held a stake in Occidental since Berkshire helped fund Occidental's $38 billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum back in 2019. Berkshire's Occidental stake has grown to about 224.1 million shares worth about $13.2 billion, making OXY stock Buffett's sixth-largest stock holding. Berkshire also reportedly holds $9.5 billion of Occidental preferred stock and warrants to buy $5 billion of OXY shares at $59.62 each.

Sold: General Motors Co. (GM)

Priced at just 4.7 times forward earnings, legacy automaker General Motors is exactly the type of value stock Buffett typically targets. Berkshire first bought shares of GM way back in the first quarter of 2012, a little over a year after it completed its initial public offering following its bankruptcy restructuring. Buffett has been steadily selling GM stock since the second quarter of 2022. Berkshire dumped 18 million shares in the most recent quarter, reducing its stake by another 45%. After the latest selling, Berkshire's remaining GM stake is down to 22 million shares worth about $848.3 million.

Bought: NVR Inc. (NVR)

NVR is one of the five largest U.S. homebuilders and is one of the three new homebuilder stocks Buffett acquired in the second quarter. Throughout Berkshire's long history, Buffett has often taken large stakes in several companies competing in the same market, such as railroads, airlines or banks. Sometimes, he has chosen to maintain those positions for diversification, while other times he later chose to focus his investments in one or two of his favorites and dump the rest. Berkshire bought 11,112 shares of NVR stock in the second quarter, a stake that's worth about $70.6 million.

Sold: Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. (MMC)

Buffett first invested in insurance broker Marsh & McLennan in the fourth quarter of 2020. Buffett has always loved the insurance business, and Berkshire has its own sizable core insurance business. At one point in 2020, Berkshire owned more than 5 million MMC shares, and the stock has more than tripled the return of the S&P 500 since the beginning of 2021. However, Buffett began trimming his Marsh & McLennan stake in the second quarter of 2021 and has continued selling ever since. In the most recent quarter, Berkshire sold its remaining 404,911 shares of MMC, completely exiting the position.

Bought: Lennar Corp. (LEN.B)

Lennar is another one of the largest U.S. homebuilders, and it rounds out the trifecta of homebuilder stocks Buffett was buying in the second quarter. Rising interest rates have made mortgages more expensive for homebuyers, but Buffett may be looking ahead to a potential perfect storm of low housing inventory and lower mortgage rates in 2024 and beyond. The homebuilder stakes are relatively small by Buffett's standards, but investors should watch to see if he continues buying in coming quarters. Berkshire currently holds 152,572 shares of Lennar's Class B preferred stock worth about $17.2 million.

Sold: Vitesse Energy Inc. (VTS)

Vitesse Energy is a small oil and gas company founded in 2022 that specializes in acquiring non-operating working and royalty interest ownership of properties primarily in the core Bakken Formation in Montana and North Dakota. Berkshire presumably acquired shares of Vitesse when it was spun off from parent company and Berkshire holding Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (JEF) in January 2023. Apparently, Buffett isn't a fan of the standalone oil and gas company, which pays a sizable 8.2% dividend. In the second quarter, Berkshire sold its entire stake of 51,026 shares of VTS stock and completely exited the position.

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