Comment by jpster
4 hours ago
So it will be the Greg Abel show during the next meeting in Omaha? Unenviable task. The crowd will be very supportive but those are huge shoes to fill.
4 hours ago
So it will be the Greg Abel show during the next meeting in Omaha? Unenviable task. The crowd will be very supportive but those are huge shoes to fill.
They'll sell off / spin-off the smaller businesses (which were held because of sentiment), simplify the business positions, and focus more on Abel's specializations. And Berkshire will lose some of the so-called Buffett premium. Impossible shoes to fill. They'll effectively break Berkshire up. A lot of that cash will go to stock buybacks as the Buffett premium vanishes.
I highly doubt that spin-offs will be a major part of Berkshire’s foreseeable future. Offering a permanent home for good businesses is one of Berkshire’s advantages when competing for acquisitions. Breaking up Berkshire would mean giving up on that competitive advantage.