Berkshire Hathaway Resumes Share Buybacks in Latest Filing

• Berkshire bought back 309 Class A share equivalents starting March 4, marking a resumption of buybacks following the leadership transition to CEO Greg Abel
• CEO Greg Abel personally purchased $15.3 million of Berkshire Class A stock using his entire after-tax salary, with his 2026 compensation rising to $25 million from $22 million in 2025
• Warren Buffett has dropped to ninth on Forbes' billionaire list with $143 billion; if he had retained shares donated since 2006, his net worth would be approximately $352 billion, making him the world's second richest person

Berkshire Hathaway Resumes Share Buybacks in Latest Filing

Summary

Key Development: Berkshire Hathaway resumed share buybacks on March 4, 2026, purchasing the equivalent of 309 Class A shares, as disclosed in its SEC proxy filing ahead of the annual meeting. The company cited "transparency with our leadership transition" as the reason for the announcement but stated there will be no future buyback disclosures outside regular quarterly reports.

Leadership Compensation

• Warren Buffett's total 2025 compensation dropped 4% to $389,488 from $405,111 in 2024, driven by reduced security services costs. His base salary remained $100,000.
• New CEO Greg Abel's salary increased to $22 million (from $21 million), with a 2026 salary set at $25 million. Abel personally purchased $15.3 million of Class A stock using his entire after-tax salary.
• Insurance chief Ajit Jain's salary also rose to $22 million from $21 million.

Corporate Governance: The board recommends voting against a shareholder proposal from Whistle Stop Capital calling for workforce management oversight reports, arguing Berkshire's decentralized structure appropriately delegates such decisions to individual subsidiaries.

Buffett's Wealth: Forbes ranks Buffett as the world's 9th richest person with approximately $145 billion (as of March 10), down from previous rankings. Since 2006, he has donated over $58 billion in Berkshire stock; had he retained these shares, his net worth would exceed $352 billion, making him the second-richest globally.

Market Position: Berkshire's market capitalization stands at $1.06 trillion, with $373.3 billion in cash as of December 31, 2025.