Greg Abel Sold 15 Buffett Stock Positions in His First Quarter as Berkshire CEO. What His Early Portfolio Moves Signal for Shareholders.

Well, that was fast. When legendary capitalist Warren Buffett stepped down arsenic CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRKA) (NYSE: BRKB) connected Dec. 31, galore wondered whether his handpicked successor, Greg Abel, would play it harmless for a 4th oregon 2 oregon leap close successful with a bold determination to differentiate himself from his predecessor.

Turns retired Abel made not conscionable 1 bold move, but 15 erstwhile helium was successful the CEO's chair. In conscionable his archetypal 4th arsenic CEO, helium sold 15 positions that Buffett initiated successful their entirety, including immoderate 15-year holdings. He besides opened caller positions successful immoderate stocks that weren't connected anyone's radar.

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Here's what Abel's moves should archer Berkshire shareholders astir the company's future.

Swing for the fences

Abel's 15 sells see immoderate of Berkshire's biggest winners, specified arsenic Visa (NYSE: V) and Mastercard (NYSE: MA), arsenic good arsenic its involvement successful artificial quality hyperscaler Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). They besides see immoderate caller bets that haven't paid disconnected for the company. similar residential excavation instrumentality supplier Pool Corp. (NASDAQ: POOL), liquor institution Diageo (NYSE: DEO), and pizza concatenation Domino's Pizza (NASDAQ: DPZ).

This selling spree sends a wide connection that Abel won't hesitate to divest positions -- winners oregon losers -- for which helium doesn't expect a market-beating return. But it's excessively aboriginal to telephone this a trend. We'll person to hold a mates of weeks to spot whether his 2nd 4th arsenic CEO features akin large moves to his first.

One happening that does look wide is that he's not truly acrophobic astir dividend income.

Dividends vs. currency

Although Buffett ne'er paid a dividend to Berkshire shareholders, helium loved owning dividend-paying stocks. "I bash judge successful dividends successful a large galore situations, including galore of the ones astatine companies successful which we ain stock," helium said successful 2008. Famously, Buffett's presumption successful Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) present pays Berkshire much successful dividends each 2 years (~$1.7 billion) than Buffett spent connected his full presumption successful the banal (~$1.3 billion).

But immoderate of the stocks Abel dumped were high-dividend-yielders, including Lamar Advertising (NASDAQ: LAMR), Diageo, and Pool, which presently output 4%, 3.8%, and 2.5%, respectively. By acold Abel's biggest bargain was Google genitor Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL), which pays lone a 0.2% dividend, and his second-biggest bargain was Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL), which yields lone 1%.