Abel's Berkshire Holds Strong to Buffett's Investment Blueprint

Greg Abel has taken over as the successor to Warren Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway. However, it appears that Buffett's influence is still strong in the company's top holdings.

Berkshire Hathaway's top three holdings make up more than 50% of its portfolio, and two of these stocks are Apple (AAPL) and American Express (AXP). These companies have established themselves as compounding businesses with durable moats.

Apple, Berkshire's largest position at around 22%, is a great example of this. The company has a strong brand reputation for high-end smartphones and devices with predictable replacement cycles. Apple also generates significant revenue from its ecosystem, including services like cloud storage, app commissions, Apple Pay, and a search revenue-sharing deal with Alphabet (GOOGL).

Another compounding business is American Express, which accounts for over 17% of Berkshire's equity holdings. The company has built its reputation on security and prestige, catering to affluent customers who are willing to pay higher annual fees for exclusive privileges.

The newest top-three holding at Berkshire Hathaway is Alphabet, which makes up nearly 13% of its portfolio. This too is a great compounding business with distinct advantages in search/AI discovery and cloud computing.