Berkshire’s Buffett to keep Class A stock until investors get comfort with successor
Warren Buffett shares his thoughts on his career and Berkshire’s future in a letter.
Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett wrote that he will keep a “significant amount" of the company’s Class A stock until shareholders get comfortable with his successor as CEO.
“That level of confidence shouldn’t take long," Buffett wrote Monday in a letter to his three children and shareholders. “My children are already 100% behind Greg as are the Berkshire directors."
Buffett, the 95-year-old chairman and CEO of Berkshire, added that he will continue writing his Thanksgiving letter to his children and shareholders each year.
“Berkshire’s individual shareholders are a very special group who are unusually generous in sharing their gains with others less fortunate. I enjoy the chance to keep in touch with you," Buffett wrote.
Buffett surprised shareholders at Berkshire’s annual shareholder meeting in May when he announced that Abel, his handpicked successor, would take over as CEO at year’s end. Berkshire has said Buffett would remain chairman.
The succession plan will also bring changes to longstanding traditions for Berkshire followers. Abel will take over writing the annual letter to shareholders, Buffett’s assistant confirmed recently to The Wall Street Journal. And starting next year, Abel will lead Berkshire’s annual meetings while Buffett sits with the company’s other directors.
For decades, Buffett’s shareholder letters have resonated far beyond Berkshire’s investors, reaching a broader group of admirers eager to read his latest thoughts on a range of business and economic issues. But he has also written public letters laying out his charitable donations, musings about philanthropy and glimpses of his will.
Write to Krystal Hur at krystal.hur@wsj.com
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