Berkshire Hathaway revealed in a regulatory filing filed Friday afternoon that it established new common-stock positions in Delta Air Lines and Macy's during the first quarter, marking some of the earliest portfolio activity under Chief Executive Greg Abel.
The filing shows Berkshire picked up nearly 40 million shares of Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) and roughly 4 million shares of Macy's (NYSE:M). After the disclosure, Delta's shares climbed about 3% in after-hours trading and Macy's rose approximately 5%.
At the same time, the company pared out of several previously held names. Berkshire exited positions in Aon PLC, Amazon.com, Domino's Pizza, Mastercard, Visa and UnitedHealth Group during the March quarter. The filing indicates these were smaller holdings within Berkshire's broader equity portfolio.
The filing notes a personnel change that may relate to the rebalancing: some of the smaller, now-disposed positions could have been managed by Todd Combs, who departed for JPMorgan Chase in April. UnitedHealth's shares traded about 2.4% lower in after-hours trading following the filing; the other exited names showed little net movement on the news.
The first-quarter activity occurred after a management handover inside Berkshire. Greg Abel took over the CEO role in January, when Warren Buffett stepped down from the position. Abel has publicly identified Apple, American Express, Coca-Cola and Moody's as core holdings and has signaled Berkshire will continue to employ a concentrated stock-investing approach.
Beyond the newly disclosed Delta and Macy's stakes, Berkshire's filing reaffirms that the conglomerate continues to hold substantial positions in Bank of America, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum, among other large stock investments.
Summary
Berkshire Hathaway added sizable new stakes in Delta Air Lines and Macy's in the first quarter and sold off smaller positions across a set of large-cap companies. The purchases and disposals appear alongside a leadership transition and the departure of an investment manager.
- Key points
- Berkshire acquired nearly 40 million shares of Delta and about 4 million Macy's shares; both names rose in after-hours trading.
- The firm exited smaller positions in Aon, Amazon, Domino's Pizza, Mastercard, Visa and UnitedHealth during the March quarter.
- Berkshire continues to list Apple, American Express, Coca-Cola and Moody's as core equity holdings and maintains large stakes in Bank of America, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum.
- Risks and uncertainties
- Changes in portfolio composition coincided with the departure of an investment manager - which could affect how smaller positions are managed going forward (impacts equity and asset-management exposure).
- Market reactions to the disclosed trades were uneven: Delta and Macy's jumped after hours while at least one exited name, UnitedHealth, fell; such volatility can affect short-term valuation for affected sectors including airlines, retail and healthcare.
- The filing indicates certain disposed holdings were small relative to the overall portfolio, which may limit their impact on Berkshire's aggregate investment profile.
All information above is drawn from Berkshire Hathaway's SEC disclosure for the March quarter and the trading moves reported in after-hours markets following that filing.