Warren Buffett has donated a record $6 billion of Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK.B) stock to the Gates Foundation and four family charities.
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The latest charitable giving marks Buffett’s biggest annual donation since he began giving away his fortune nearly 20 years ago. The latest gifts totaled 12.36 million shares of Berkshire Hathaway’s more affordable Class B shares. In total, the Oracle of Omaha, as Buffett is known, has given more than $60 billion to various charities.
In this latest record setting round of gifts, Buffett donated 9.43 million shares to the Gates Foundation, the philanthropic venture run by Microsoft (MSFT) co-founder Bill Gates, which Buffett has long supported. Buffett also gave 943,384 shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation named after his late wife.
And, he donated 660,366 shares to each of the three charities run by his children: Howard, Susie, and Peter: the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, Sherwood Foundation, and NoVo Foundation. After the latest gifts, Buffett continues to own about 14% of Berkshire’s stock.
Net Worth
Despite giving away more than $50 billion worth of stock since 2006, Buffett maintains a net worth estimated at $152 billion, making him the fifth-richest person in the world. Despite accelerating the stock he is giving away, Buffett, age 94, stressed in a written statement that he does not intend to sell any of the Berkshire Hathaway shares that he owns.
BRK.B stock has been sliding lower since Buffett announced this spring that he intends to step down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of this year. In 2024, Buffett changed his will to designate 99.5% of his remaining fortune after his death to a charitable trust overseen by his children. His kids must decide unanimously where the money will be donated.
Warren Buffett has led Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire Hathaway for 60 years, since 1965. BRK.B stock is down nearly 10% in the past three months.
Is BRK.B Stock a Buy?
Berkshire Hathaway’s Class B stock has a consensus Moderate Buy rating among three Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on two Buy and one Hold recommendations assigned in the last three months. The average BRK.B price target of $591.00 implies 21.88% upside from current levels.
