Warren Buffett and Greg Abel Just Sent Shockwaves Through Wall Street With This $377 Billion Warning
Berkshire Hathaway's cash pile has swelled to $377.4 billion, and the stock-selling behind it shows no sign of stopping. Warren Buffett and Greg Abel have been net sellers of equities in 15 of the last 16 quarters, a streak that keeps BRK.A and BRK.B holders watching the balance sheet more closely than the portfolio.
The valuation signal behind the move is stark. The Buffett indicator, which compares total market value to the economy, sits at 236%. Its historical average is 89%. That puts the reading at roughly 2.65 times the long-run norm, a gap that supports the case Berkshire is treating the broader market as significantly overvalued.
Interpretation: a cash position this size, built through 15 net-selling quarters out of 16, reads as a deliberate stance rather than a one-off trim. Berkshire is choosing to hold cash over redeploying it into stocks at current prices. That is an inference from the pattern and the indicator, not a stated Berkshire forecast.
For BRK.A and BRK.B, the cash hoard cuts two ways. It reflects caution about market pricing, but it also represents dry powder if valuations reset.