Honestly, looking at the price of berkshire hathaway stock usually triggers one of two reactions. You either stare at the six-figure price tag of a Class A share and wonder if it’s a typo, or you look at the Class B shares and think they're just a "mini" version for the rest of us.
Both are kinda right, but also miss the point.
As of January 17, 2026, the market is currently digesting the biggest shift in Berkshire’s history: the official start of the Greg Abel era. Warren Buffett stepped down as CEO just a few weeks ago, on December 31, 2025. It’s the end of a 60-year run that basically defined modern value investing. Right now, the Class A shares (BRK.A) are hovering around $740,750, while the more accessible Class B (BRK.B) is trading near $493.
If you're tracking the price, you've probably noticed it’s been a bit of a bumpy ride lately. The stock actually hit an all-time high back in May 2025, but it’s been consolidating since then. People are nervous. They’re wondering if Abel can keep the magic alive or if Berkshire is about to become "just another" conglomerate.
Why the Price of Berkshire Hathaway Stock Isn't Like Other Tech Giants
Most people are used to NVDA or Apple moving 5% because of a single tweet or a new AI chip. Berkshire doesn't play that game. Its price is anchored to something much more "old school": book value and a massive mountain of cash.
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Currently, Berkshire is sitting on a record-breaking $381.7 billion in cash. That is a staggering amount of money. To put it in perspective, they could basically buy FedEx, GM, and Boeing with cash and still have change for lunch. But they aren't buying. Buffett spent his final year as CEO mostly selling—trimming Apple and Bank of America—and parking that money in Treasuries yielding over 5%.
This "dry powder" acts like a floor for the price of berkshire hathaway stock. When the market gets shaky, Berkshire usually holds up better because investors know that $380 billion is waiting to pounce on a deal.
The A vs. B Divide
If you’re new to this, the price gap between the two shares is wild.
- Class A (BRK.A): These have never been split. Buffett famously refused to split them because he wanted long-term shareholders, not speculators. They currently trade at roughly 1,500 times the price of a Class B share.
- Class B (BRK.B): These were created in the 90s so regular people could own a piece of the pie. They have 1/1,500th of the economic interest of an A share but much less voting power.
What’s Actually Moving the Needle in 2026?
It’s not just the leadership change. The price of berkshire hathaway stock is reacting to a few specific "real-world" catalysts that most headlines miss.
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- The OxyChem Integration: On January 2, 2026, Berkshire finished its $9.7 billion acquisition of Occidental Petroleum’s chemical unit. This isn't a "sexy" tech deal, but it’s a cash-flow monster.
- The Apple Question: Even though Buffett trimmed the position, Apple still makes up a huge chunk of Berkshire’s equity portfolio. When Apple’s AI "upgrade cycle" rumors started swirling late last year, Berkshire’s stock price hitched a ride.
- Interest Income: Because they have so much cash in Treasury bills, Berkshire is basically a giant bank right now. If the Fed keeps rates higher for longer, Berkshire earns billions in interest without lifting a finger.
Is it Overvalued or a Steal?
Some analysts at Morningstar and Simply Wall St have been arguing that the stock is actually trading at a discount. Based on an "excess returns" model, some estimates put the intrinsic value of a Class A share closer to $1.1 million.
But there’s a catch. The market often applies a "conglomerate discount." This basically means the market thinks the whole is worth less than the sum of its parts because it’s so big and complicated to manage. With Abel taking over, the big question is whether that discount will shrink or grow. Abel is a "numbers guy" with a background in energy, and he's expected to be much more aggressive about "institutionalizing" the culture that Buffett built on intuition.
Common Misconceptions About the Share Price
You’ll often hear that Berkshire is "too big to grow."
That’s sort of true. It’s hard to move the needle when you’re already a trillion-dollar company. However, growth for Berkshire isn't just about stock price appreciation; it’s about the compounding of the underlying businesses—Geico, BNSF Railway, and those dozens of manufacturing and retail companies.
Another mistake? Thinking the price will crash because Buffett is gone.
The "post-Buffett" transition has been planned for decades. The "Golden Cross" technical pattern seen on the charts in early January 2026 suggests that big institutional money is actually sticking around. They aren't running for the exits; they're waiting to see what Abel does with that $381 billion war chest.
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Actionable Insights for Investors
If you’re watching the price of berkshire hathaway stock with an eye on buying, don't just look at the ticker.
- Watch the Price-to-Book (P/B) Ratio: Historically, Buffett loved buying back shares when the P/B was around 1.2. Currently, it’s sitting closer to 1.5. It’s not "cheap-cheap," but it’s historically reasonable for a company with this much liquidity.
- Check the Cash Pile: In the next quarterly report (likely in February), look at whether Abel is finally deploying that cash. If he starts buying big companies again, expect the stock price to react violently—likely to the upside.
- Don't Ignore Class B: For 99% of people, BRK.B is the only way to play. It’s liquid, easy to trade, and tracks the A shares almost perfectly in percentage terms.
The era of 20% annual gains might be over, but Berkshire remains the ultimate "sleep well at night" stock. It’s basically a private equity fund, an insurance giant, and a massive savings account all rolled into one. Whether it hits the $800,000 mark this year depends entirely on whether Greg Abel finds a way to spend that mountain of cash.
To stay ahead of the curve, your next steps should be to monitor the upcoming Q4 earnings release for any shifts in capital allocation strategy and keep a close watch on the 13F filings to see if the trimming of major tech positions has finally ceased under the new leadership.