Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a significant increase in its stake in Alphabet during the second quarter, elevating the Google parent company into its three largest stock holdings. The conglomerate also boosted investments in Delta Air Lines and several homebuilders.
According to regulatory filings released Friday, the company, now run by CEO Greg Abel, held approximately 106 million shares of Alphabet as of the end of June, valued at $37.9 billion. This position surged 83% during the latest quarter, making Alphabet the third-largest U.S. listed stock holding by market value, trailing only Apple and American Express.
The growth was largely driven by a $10 billion private stock purchase announced in early June, when Alphabet sought fresh capital to fund its massive AI infrastructure buildout.
Warren Buffett, now Berkshire's chairman, stated he turned bullish on Alphabet with the support of Abel.
Berkshire Hathaway also continued to build a substantial position in the airline industry, one of Buffett's former favorite sectors. The stake in Delta Air Lines climbed 44% in the second quarter to 57.3 million shares, valued at roughly $5.4 billion as of the end of June. Berkshire Hathaway had previously sold off all its airline holdings early in the pandemic and only recently resumed buying Delta Air Lines.
Homebuilding was another cyclical sector where Berkshire Hathaway increased its exposure. The company boosted its holdings of Lennar Class A shares by nearly 30% to 13.1 million shares, worth about $1.19 billion, while its Class B shares increased by 25% to roughly 298,000 shares. Berkshire Hathaway also disclosed a small new position in D.R. Horton, holding 3,600 shares as of the end of June.
Berkshire Hathaway ended a streak of being a net seller of stocks, becoming a net buyer in the second quarter with net purchases of nearly $20 billion. Prior to the last three months, the conglomerate had been a net seller of equities for 14 consecutive quarters.
The group's cash level fell to $365.5 billion at the end of June from a record $397.4 billion three months earlier, as Berkshire Hathaway began putting more capital to work through investments and share buybacks. The quarter also saw the completion of Berkshire Hathaway's acquisition of Taylor Morrison, a homebuilder headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.
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