Los 8 acciones de Berkshire: Una perspectiva de un inversor de valor sobre las fortalezas concentradas de estas empresas

For a value investor, the blueprint is clear: concentrate capital in a few high-quality businesses with durable competitive advantages. Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio, as it enters a new era, is a textbook case of this philosophy in action. The setup is extreme concentration, with the top ten holdings composing about 90% of the entire equity portfolio. This is not a diversified basket; it is a focused collection of what Warren Buffett long considered his best ideas.

The dominance of the four largest holdings-Apple, American Express, Bank of America, and Coca-Cola-reveals the core of the strategy. Together, they account for 58% of invested assets. This isn't about chasing trends. It's about owning pieces of businesses with wide moats: Apple's ecosystem lock-in, American Express's premium brand and network effects, Bank of America's scale and franchise, and Coca-Cola's global brand power. These are the companies Buffett believed could compound capital over decades, and the portfolio's structure reflects that long-term, compounding mindset.

The transition of leadership adds a crucial layer. Warren Buffett officially retired as CEO effective January 1, 2026, passing the torch to Greg Abel. Abel's stated intent to run the company similarly to his predecessor is the most important continuity signal. As a long-term-minded, value-focused investor himself, Abel's philosophy aligns with the portfolio's DNA. The concentration, the focus on moats, and the patience to wait for bargains are all part of the inherited playbook. The portfolio's structure suggests the new CEO has no immediate plans to diversify or dilute the approach. The blueprint remains intact.

Analyzing the Core Holdings: Intrinsic Value and Competitive Advantage

The portfolio's structure is a direct reflection of its founder's value philosophy. Each of the top four holdings represents a classic case study in durable competitive advantage, but their current setups differ significantly. The central question for a long-term investor is whether the intrinsic value of these businesses, after years of ownership and recent strategic shifts, still justifies their concentration in the portfolio.

Apple stands as the largest single position, representing a staggering 22.48% of the portfolio. Its inclusion is a testament to the power of a wide moat: an ecosystem of loyal customers and a pivot toward high-margin, recurring subscription services. Yet the story here is one of transition. While the company's subscription services segment has been an ongoing bright spot and its buyback program has retired nearly 44% of its shares, the core device growth engine has slowed. Warren Buffett himself acknowledged this, selling a massive 74% of his position over the last two years. This isn't a rejection of the business, but a disciplined recognition that the original bargain has been largely locked in. The remaining stake is now a bet on the continued execution of a platform business, not a growth story at a discount.

Bank of America and American Express, together making up another 32.24% of the portfolio, are attractive for different reasons. Both are financials with powerful, albeit cyclical, moats. Their appeal lies in their capital-return programs and their alignment with Buffett's long-term view on the sector. They are businesses that can compound capital over the economic cycle, returning cash to shareholders during periods of strength. Their value is less about immediate growth and more about the durability of their franchises and the predictability of their cash flows when the cycle turns. They are the kind of "wonderful company at a fair price" that Buffett seeks, but their price is often fair only after a period of underperformance.

Coca-Cola, at 9.79% of the portfolio, exemplifies the purest form of the value investor's dream: a global brand with predictable cash flows. Its moat is built on decades of consumer trust and distribution reach. The financial detail is striking: the company's near 62% yield relative to cost basis highlights the massive unrealized gain accumulated over years of ownership. This isn't a stock bought for a yield; it's a stock held for the decades-long compounding of a business that rarely disappoints. It represents the patience at the heart of the strategy-owning a wonderful company for so long that the cost basis becomes almost irrelevant to the intrinsic value of the future cash flows.

The bottom line is that the portfolio's largest positions are not a collection of bargains. They are a collection of proven compounding engines, each with its own stage in the business cycle. The value investor's task is to assess whether the current prices still offer a margin of safety relative to the long-term cash-generating power of these durable businesses. The concentration speaks to a high level of conviction, but it also demands a high level of discipline in monitoring the quality of the moats and the reasonableness of the prices paid.

The Transition and Capital Deployment: Catalysts and Risks

The immediate catalyst is clear: the torch has been passed. With Warren Buffett officially retired as CEO, the focus shifts to Greg Abel and how he deploys Berkshire's massive war chest. The setup is one of extreme patience meeting a colossal pile of cash. As of the third quarter, that pile stood at $354 billion. Abel has pledged to run the company similarly to his predecessor, which is the most important continuity signal. He is a long-term-minded, value-focused investor who is not afraid to be patient. The primary risk, then, is not a change in philosophy but the execution of it in a market where finding bargains has become increasingly difficult.

The recent selling activity provides a crucial context for Abel's new mandate. For 12 straight quarters, Buffett has been a net seller of equities, with recent sales including Apple and Bank of America. This pattern suggests valuation concerns have been a driving force. The portfolio's recent purchase of Alphabet, a stock Buffett once called a 'missed opportunity', indicates a potential shift in timing or valuation thresholds. It signals that the bar for a "wonderful company at a fair price" may have been lowered, or that the opportunity cost of holding cash has risen. This move, however, was made before the CEO transition and does not necessarily signal a new investment philosophy from Abel.

The real catalyst to watch is capital deployment. With more than $350 billion in cash and earnings expected to decline, Abel's first major deal, buyback phase, or potential move toward a dividend could influence how investors frame Berkshire's future returns. The portfolio's structure, with its extreme concentration, suggests he will not rush. His approach is expected to be patient, value-oriented, and focused on preserving capital. The risk is that in a market where valuations remain high, the search for bargains could lead to a prolonged period of inactivity, which might disappoint shareholders seeking a catalyst. Yet for a value investor, this patience is the point. The goal is not to deploy capital at any price, but to wait for a true margin of safety to emerge. The transition is not about changing the playbook, but about executing it with the same discipline, even as the market landscape evolves.