Before Thanksgiving, Warren Buffett makes a sizable donation and reassures shareholders. Berkshire is made to endure.
Before Thanksgiving, Warren Buffett assured investors in a letter that Berkshire Hathaway is “built to last” by donating more than $870 million in company stock to four family foundations.
The 93-year-old, renowned investor gave the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation—named for his first wife—1.5 million Class B shares of his company. Additionally, he donated 300,000 Class B shares to the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation—the three nonprofits his children manage.
Buffett released a statement in which he stated, “They supplement certain of the lifetime pledges I made in 2006 and that continue until my death (at 93, I feel good but fully realize I am playing in extra innings).”
The previous Thanksgiving, he gave comparable gifts. The man known as the “Oracle of Omaha” promised to donate the wealth he amassed at Berkshire, the company he founded and has been leading in Omaha since 1965. Since 2006, Buffett has contributed annually to the same four charities.
Berkshire owns a wide range of well-known companies, including BNSF Railway, Apple, and roughly 6% of Crown Jewel Geico Insurance.
Shares of the conglomerate have gained nearly 17% this year after hitting an all-time high in September.
The venerable investor assured Berkshire stockholders in his letter that even in the absence of his supervision, the empire he has built over the previous 60 years will endure.
“My substantial Berkshire interests will provide short-term support for Berkshire’s unique traits and conduct. Berkshire, though, will soon get the recognition it merits, according to Buffett. “Big institutions of all stripes, whether governmental, charitable, or profit-driven, are susceptible to decay. However, it’s not a given. An advantage of Berkshire is that it is long-lasting.
Buffett’s successor is Greg Abel, vice chairman of Berkshire’s non-insurance divisions. Buffett has praised Abel, pointing out that he has assumed the majority of the duties.
The executors of Buffett’s will and the designated trustees of the charitable trust that will inherit almost all of his money are his three children.
Buffett stated, “My children and their father share the belief that dynastic wealth is not desirable, even though it is legal and common in many parts of the world, including the United States.” Furthermore, we’ve had enough chances to see that wealth does not equate to wisdom or wickedness.
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