Before Buffett's "retirement," Berkshire adjusted its bets on giants: In Q3, it accelerated the sale of Apple and built a position in Google

The holding document shows that as the countdown to "retirement" approaches at the end of this year, "stock god" Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has adjusted its bets on American tech giants.

After the U.S. stock market closed on Friday, the 14th, Eastern Time, Berkshire disclosed its 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), revealing that in the third quarter of this year, Berkshire's largest individual stock holdings were concentrated in two tech giants—Apple and Alphabet, the parent company of Google. Among them, Apple was further sold off, while Alphabet was built up.

Commentators noted that considering Buffett's traditional value investment philosophy and his cautious attitude towards high-growth tech stocks, the move to build a position in Alphabet was quite unexpected.

Selling Apple for Two Consecutive Quarters, Third Quarter Sales Doubled

The 13F filing shows that Berkshire reduced its holdings in Apple (AAPL) by approximately 41.79 million shares in the third quarter, a decrease of over 14.9% compared to the end of the second quarter, with a reduction in market value of about $10.6 billion.

From the data in the 13F filing, this marks the second consecutive quarter that Berkshire has sold off Apple, and the scale of the sales in the third quarter was significantly increased compared to the second quarter. The number of shares sold in the third quarter was more than double the 20 million shares sold in the second quarter, and the decline in market value was approximately 2.6 times that of the second quarter. This scale exceeded previous media estimates. Wall Street Insight had previously mentioned that media estimates suggested Berkshire might reduce its holdings in Apple by about 35 million shares in the third quarter.

However, due to Apple's stock price rising approximately 24% in the third quarter, Apple's proportion in Berkshire's total holdings slightly increased from 22.31% in the second quarter to 22.69% in the third quarter.

Berkshire reduced its holdings in Apple for the first time in half a year in the second quarter. In the second and third quarters of last year, Berkshire had significantly reduced its holdings in Apple, with reductions of 50% and 25%, respectively. Subsequently, in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year, Berkshire's holdings in Apple remained unchanged.

From the change in market value, Apple was the stock that Berkshire reduced the most in the third quarter. Nevertheless, by the end of the third quarter, Berkshire still held over 238 million shares of Apple, making it still the top holding.

Reduced Holdings in Bank of America by Over $1.9 Billion in the Third Quarter, 45% Reduction Over More Than a Year

Among Berkshire's top ten holdings, besides Apple, only Bank of America (BAC) was reduced in the third quarter. The company reduced its holdings by approximately 37.2 million shares, a decrease of 6.15% in share count, with a market value reduction of $1.92 billion, and the holding proportion slightly decreased from 11.12% in the second quarter to 10.96%.

In terms of changes in market value, Bank of America was the stock that Berkshire reduced the second most in the third quarter after Apple. According to the 13F data, Berkshire also increased its selling intensity in the third quarter, with the number of shares sold being over 41% higher than in the second quarter, which was still less than media estimates. Previously, media estimated that Berkshire might reduce its holdings in Bank of America by 50 million to 100 million shares in the third quarter.

By the end of the third quarter, Bank of America remained Berkshire's third-largest holding. However, over the past year, the company has reduced its holdings by more than 40%. By the third quarter of this year, Berkshire's holdings in Bank of America had decreased from 1.03 billion shares in mid-last year to 568 million shares, a decline of nearly 45%

Berkshire's First New Investment in Alphabet with 17.85 Million Shares

The 13F filing shows that in the third quarter, Berkshire Hathaway made its first investment in Alphabet (GOOGL) with approximately 17.85 million shares, marking Berkshire's initial position in Google's parent company.

These Alphabet shares are valued at approximately $4.34 billion, accounting for 1.62% of Berkshire's portfolio. In terms of changes in portfolio value and proportion, Alphabet was the most purchased stock by Berkshire in the third quarter, with a buying scale far exceeding that of the second-ranked Chubb.

In the third quarter, Alphabet's stock price rose over 37%, and it has increased more than 40% since the beginning of the year, making it one of the big winners in the U.S. stock market this year.

Media reports suggest that the investment in Alphabet may have been made by Berkshire's investment managers Todd Combs or Ted Weschler, both of whom have been more active in the tech stock sector. One of them was among the first to invest in Amazon in 2019.

Only Increased Holdings in Chubb Among the Top Ten Holdings in the Third Quarter

By the end of the third quarter, based on portfolio value, most of Berkshire's top ten holdings were "old faces," with the only new addition being Alphabet, which replaced the kidney dialysis service provider DaVita (DVA) that ranked tenth in the second quarter and fell to eleventh in the third quarter.

Among these major holdings, Berkshire only increased its stake in Chubb in the third quarter, adding approximately 4.3 million shares, increasing its value by $1.21 billion, and raising its holding proportion from 3.04% to 3.31%.

Berkshire's top ten holdings in the third quarter are as follows:

• Apple (AAPL)
• American Express (AXP)
• Bank of America (BAC)
• Coca-Cola (KO)
• Chevron (CVX)
• Occidental Petroleum (OXY), rising from seventh to sixth
• Moody's (MCO), falling from sixth to seventh
• Chubb (CB), rising from ninth to eighth
• Kraft Heinz (KHC), falling from eighth to ninth
• Alphabet (GOOGL)