Berkshire Hathaway Increases Alphabet Stake to $37.8 Billion

Berkshire Hathaway increased its investment in Alphabet Inc. by 658% during the second quarter, acquiring approximately 48.1 million additional shares. This expansion brought the conglomerate's total holding to nearly 106 million shares, valued at approximately $37.8 billion as of June 30. The move establishes Alphabet as the firm's third-largest stock investment, trailing only Apple and American Express.

The investment included a $10 billion allocation in June specifically intended to support Alphabet's AI infrastructure. This aggressive buying occurred as Alphabet shares pulled back approximately 7.2% in a month, despite strong second-quarter results featuring $119.80 billion in revenue and 82% growth for Google Cloud. While other investors expressed concern over negative free cash flow and capital expenditures that nearly doubled to $44.92 billion, Berkshire Hathaway treated the price dip as an opportunity.

Under CEO Greg Abel, the conglomerate also increased stakes in Delta Air Lines, Macy's, and Lennar, and completed a $6.8 billion acquisition of Taylor Morrison in July. These actions contributed to a decrease in cash reserves to $364.7 billion by the end of June, marking the first time in 14 quarters that the company bought more stocks than it sold. To balance these moves, the firm eliminated its position in Constellation Brands and reduced holdings in several financial institutions, including Bank of America and Capital One.