沃伦·巴菲特卸任伯克希尔主席，任期长达61年

Key insights: Warren Buffett steps down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway

On September 18, 2024, Warren Buffett officially resigned as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, ending a six-year leadership career. The board elected his son Howard G. Buffett as the new chairman, while Greg Abel remained president and CEO.

Buffett was transferred to honorary chairman and retained his seat on the board. This transfer of power separated the leadership and management of the board of directors, but the decision-making power of investment and capital allocation still lies with Abel.

Buffett withdraws from completing Berkshire succession plan

Berkshire Hathaway announced that Buffett has become honorary chairman and continues to serve as a director. Howard Buffett, who has served as a director since 1993, took over the position under the company's established succession plan. <>

Buffett told shareholders that Abel has taken over key decisions at Berkshire and his performance has exceeded expectations set when he took over as CEO.

The transition follows another executive transition arrangement that was implemented earlier this year. Berkshire's 2025 Form 10-K filing shows that Abel has officially become CEO on January 1, 2026. The document clearly grants Abel the decision-making power for major investments and capital allocation. Ajit Jain continues to lead insurance operations, while other operating executives report through Berkshire's decentralized structure.

董事会已于2025年5月4日一致批准任命阿贝尔为首席执行官，并通过向美国证券交易委员会（SEC）提交的Form 8-K文件披露了这一决定。随后，伯克希尔修订了其公司章程，以分离董事长与首席执行官的职责。该公司在2025年10月的Form 8-K文件中披露了这一治理结构的调整。

阿贝尔掌控资本配置权

伯克希尔最新的季度报告显示了目前由阿贝尔主导的资金规模。截至6月30日，总资产达到1.263万亿美元，高于2025年底的1.222万亿美元。保险及其他业务持有现金、现金等价物及美国国债共计3592亿美元。这些业务还持有价值3237.8亿美元的权益证券。<>

公司在2026年上半年回购了价值48亿美元的库存股。 filings显示，大部分回购发生在第二季度。伯克希尔的回购政策将股票买回与管理层对内在价值的估算挂钩。同时，公司要求合并后的现金及国债持仓保持在300亿美元以上。

资本部署不仅限于股票回购。伯克希尔于1月2日完成了对OxyChem约94亿美元的收购，并于7月24日以约68亿美元的价格收购了Taylor Morrison Home Corporation。这些交易为投资者提供了早期了解阿贝尔收购策略的机会。

截至6月30日，伯克希尔的股东权益为7479亿美元。上半年归属于股东的净利润达到358亿美元。

Insurance float was approximately US$177.5 billion as of June 30, an increase of US$1.1 billion from the beginning of the year. In addition to Berkshire Energy and BNSF Railway, Berkshire also reported $43.3 billion in borrowing. Berkshire's own outstanding debt is $20.4 billion. Since December 2025, this balance has dropped by $2.3 billion due to debt repayments and currency fluctuations.

However, Berkshire warned that investment gains could cause fluctuations in reported earnings. The first-half results included approximately $11.4 billion in post-tax investment gains.

Buffett's high-performance benchmark

Berkshire's 2025 annual report records pre-transition investment performance. From 1965 to 2025, Berkshire's market value per share grew at a compound annual rate of 19.7%. <>

During the same period, the S & P 500's annualized return (including dividends) was 10.5%. Berkshire reported an overall return of 6,099,294% from 1964 to 2025. These data set strict historical comparisons for management, but they do not predict how Berkshire will perform in the future under Abel and Howard Buffett.

The company's structure also limits direct comparisons with earlier eras. Today, Berkshire has huge insurance, rail, energy, manufacturing, services and retail businesses. Its size affects management's ability to deploy capital. Even billions of dollars in deals seem increasingly insignificant because they no longer make up a far smaller proportion of Berkshire's asset base than they did a few decades ago.

Abel now controls investment and capital allocation decisions that Berkshire considers core personal responsibilities. Howard Buffett's chairmanship places board oversight under an independent management structure.

After the September 18 board action, Susan Decker continued to serve as Berkshire's lead independent director. Warren Buffett stayed on the board and retained the title of honorary chairman.

Berkshire faces the next test of the post-Buffett era

Berkshire did not announce other leadership deadlines in a September 18 statement. As a result, the current governance transition is mainly concentrated on Abel, Howard Buffett and Decker.

The next planned financial checkpoint is Berkshire's third-quarter report. At that time, investors can assess cash levels, buybacks, acquisitions and portfolio changes under the new structure.

This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute any financial or investment advice. Equity investing involves risks and past performance does not guarantee future results. Readers should study for themselves before making investment decisions.