As actions and Alphabet rose 5.5% in pre-market trading this Monday (17), after Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a stake in the technology giant, marking what could be one of the conglomerate’s last major moves under the leadership of Warren Buffett.
A document released on Friday (14) showed that . Considering the last market closing, this stake would be worth US$4.93 billion, according to Reuters calculations.
Berkshire’s decision comes amid growing concerns about big tech companies’ high spending on AI, which intensified after Michael Burry, of “The Big Short” fame, delisted his hedge fund last week following his recent criticism of leading AI companies.
He will be succeeded by Greg Abel.
It was not clear whether Buffett, his portfolio managers Todd Combs and Ted Weschler or Abel made the specific purchase, although Buffett typically oversees the larger investments.
At Berkshire’s 2019 annual shareholder meeting, Buffett and the late Vice Chairman Charlie Munger expressed regret for not investing in Google sooner.
“We made a mistake,” Munger said.
Traditionally, Berkshire Hathaway avoids shares of technology companies, with Buffett arguing that Apple (AAPL.O), its largest stock holding, is a consumer products company rather than a technology play.
