When warren buffett stepped aside as Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO on Dec. 31, 2025, the handoff did not feel like a clean break. It felt like a transfer of judgment. Greg Abel now runs the company’s day-to-day operations, and the first months of 2026 have shown where he is willing to place capital, and why that matters to Berkshire shareholders.
What is Greg Abel doing first?
Abel’s early decisions point to two clear priorities: buying Berkshire Hathaway stock and continuing a major bet on Japan. In March, he purchased $226 million worth of Berkshire Hathaway shares and restarted the company’s share repurchase program. That move matters because it signals confidence in Berkshire’s own valuation and in the idea that the stock is still attractive enough for the company to buy.
At the same time, Berkshire has kept building a large position in Japan. The company’s stakes in five major trading houses, along with a separate investment in Tokio Marine, now add up to about $46 billion of Berkshire’s $316 billion investment portfolio. That is a significant share of capital devoted to one overseas market, and it shows Abel’s willingness to concentrate on what he sees as the strongest long-term opportunities.
Why does Japan matter so much to Berkshire?
The Japan strategy is not just about geography. It is about the kind of businesses Abel wants Berkshire to own. The trading houses and Tokio Marine share three features that fit Berkshire’s long-standing discipline: capital returns to shareholders, modest executive compensation, and valuations that look more appealing than many U. S. alternatives.
That mix helps explain why the warren buffett era and the Abel era look more connected than different. Buffett long emphasized discipline in capital allocation, and Abel appears to be following the same logic while putting more weight on markets where prices still leave room for value. The contrast is sharp: the U. S. stock market entered the year at its second-priciest valuation over the last 155 years, while the Japanese companies Berkshire is buying have historically traded at high single-digit to low double-digit price-to-earnings ratios.
How does this affect Berkshire shareholders?
For shareholders, Abel’s moves suggest continuity with a sharper focus on deployment. Berkshire remains a vast conglomerate with dozens of operating businesses, a large portfolio of stocks and bonds, and more than $650 billion in assets under management. In that setting, buybacks and concentrated investments are not symbolic gestures. They are statements about where management believes value still exists.
Abel’s willingness to buy back Berkshire shares also fits a rule Buffett himself made plain: buybacks should depend on price. Buffett had stopped repurchasing Berkshire stock in 2024 when the price-to-book ratio moved above 1. 5. With the stock now trading around 1. 4 times book value, Abel appears to see an opening to use the company’s cash more aggressively. The message is clear: the company is not just holding capital, it is trying to put it to work where returns look sensible.
What do these early moves say about Warren Buffett’s legacy?
The new chapter at Berkshire still carries the imprint of warren buffett, even as Abel makes the calls. Buffett remains chairman of the board, but the daily responsibility now belongs to his successor. That makes the early pattern important. Abel is not discarding the Buffett model; he is applying it in a slightly different way, with a stronger emphasis on overseas value and on buying Berkshire itself when the price looks right.
For investors, that creates both comfort and tension. Comfort, because the philosophy seems intact. Tension, because the next phase of Berkshire will be measured not only by preservation of the old approach, but by whether Abel can prove it still works in a different market and a different era.
On a quiet March day, the numbers told the story better than any speech. A $226 million stock purchase, billions more in buybacks, and $46 billion aimed at Japan are not isolated trades. They are the first visible marks of a new Berkshire, still shaped by warren buffett, but now increasingly defined by Greg Abel’s hands on the wheel.
