Is Berkshire Hathaway Stock a Buy as Warren Buffett Successor Greg Abel Starts to Deploy the Company's Cash Hoard?
2026-08-11 10:10
•Geoffrey Seiler •The Motley Fool
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Berkshire Hathaway Begins to Spend — Should You Follow?
With Greg Abel at the helm, Berkshire is moving from cash hoarding to active investing, showing early signs of growth and opportunity.
Berkshire Hathaway’s vault of cash — now $365 billion strong — is starting to move under CEO Greg Abel. After years of cautious accumulation, the company is back to buying shares and making acquisitions like the Taylor Morrison homebuilder. This signals a shift from 'waiting for the perfect deal' to seizing opportunities. Even operating earnings are up 16% year-over-year. From a South African perspective, while we don’t have a direct JSE equivalent, the USD/ZAR exchange rate is worth watching. A confident Berkshire buying U.S. assets could keep the dollar steady, which matters for sectors like mining and financials here. However, the risk remains that these investments may not pan out or that inflation and rising rates disrupt profits. For now, the valuation at 1.85 times tangible book value suggests the market isn’t overly optimistic yet, offering cautious hope. this is just our opinion and not financial advice
We would watch Berkshire for selective entry around price dips, as active capital deployment could unlock shareholder value. For South African investors, keep an eye on USD/ZAR for currency risk management.
- BRK.B
- USD/ZAR
- Acquisitions fail to deliver expected returns
- U.S. economic conditions worsen, impacting Berkshire’s portfolio
6/10
Under new CEO Greg Abel, Berkshire Hathaway has shifted from its conservative cash-hoarding strategy to actively deploying capital. The company resumed share buybacks ($4.5B in Q2), became a net stock buyer for the first time in 3+ years (including a $10B Alphabet investment), and acquired homebuilder Taylor Morrison. Operating earnings grew 16% in Q2, though insurance underwriting profits declined. With $365.5B in cash remaining and an attractive valuation (1.85x tangible book value), analysts view the stock as a compelling long-term buy.
Our take is based on reporting first published by The Motley Fool.