Tech, insurance, finance — these stocks run the gamut.
Warren Buffett is departing as Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B) CEO at the end of 2025, but that doesn’t mean his stock ideas are, or won’t be, worth following. The five stocks below that are in Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio look especially promising.
1. Amazon
Amazon (AMZN -0.33%) is one of the most promising artificial intelligence (AI) stocks that investors can buy. The company is incorporating AI into its e-commerce platform to drive efficiencies and profitability. But it’s really Amazon Web Services (AWS) that’s leading the way.
After years of heavy investment, AWS remains the largest cloud infrastructure provider in the world, with a 30% market share. That’s nearly as much as the next two competitors combined. Because AI companies typically don’t build out their own compute infrastructure, AWS has been a prime beneficiary of higher spending and demand for AI services. AI companies essentially rent server space from AWS to train, deploy, and execute their models. In a sense, that puts Amazon at the center of the AI revolution.
As of the last reporting period, Berkshire owns roughly 10 million AMZN shares comprising 0.8% of its publicly traded portfolio. It’s a stock worth buying right now.
2. Visa
As a business, Visa (V 0.90%) is a master in network effects. When paying for an item at a store, shoppers want to know that their means of payment will be accepted. Merchants, meanwhile, only want to accept forms of payment that customers want to use. This dynamic naturally consolidates the payment market. It’s why the credit cards in your wallet only work on a few networks.
For years, Visa has been the largest credit card network in the U.S., with an estimated 57.5% market share. Only one other company has garnered a double-digit market share. Critically, Visa’s market share has actually increased in recent years despite its dominant position — a strong sign that network effects are continuing to fuel the business.
Berkshire owns around 8.3 million shares of Visa, which comprise 1% of its publicly traded portfolio.
3. Mastercard
Much of what was said about Visa above is true for Mastercard (MA 0.90%). It holds a 37.5% market share for credit cards in the U.S., essentially granting Visa and Mastercard a duopoly.
Berkshire owns nearly 4 million shares of Mastercard, equating to a 0.8% portfolio weighting. So Buffett may favor Visa a bit more. But by holding both, Buffett seems to be betting on the business model and market consolidation in general, not on one company over the other. So if you’re thinking about buying either Mastercard or Visa, consider following Buffett and buying both.
Image source: Getty Images.
4. Apple
Apple (AAPL 0.07%) remains Berkshire’s biggest position, despite some sizable stake sales in recent years. Berkshire owns a massive 300 million-share stake worth around $64 billion — more than 16% of Berkshire’s total publicly traded portfolio.
While you may own an Apple iPhone or computer, it’s Apple’s software ecosystem that accounts for its large weighting in Berkshire’s portfolio. “Once you are fully invested in the [Apple] App ecosystem and you have got your thousands of photographs up in the cloud and you are used to the keystrokes and functionality and where everything is, you become a sticky consumer,” one of Buffett’s lieutenants, Ted Weschler, said in 2016.
As mentioned, Berkshire has been dumping Apple stock recently. Shares seem pricey at 33 times earnings, despite tepid revenue growth expected for 2025. But it remains a dominant holding even with the heavy sales, and one worth buying.
5. Chubb
Chubb (CB -0.29%) is one of the least exciting stocks in Berkshire’s portfolio. But it’s one of my favorites.
Most people have never heard of Chubb, yet it’s one of the largest global insurance companies in the world, offering property and casualty insurance, accident and health insurance, reinsurance, and life insurance products. It’s a competitive business, but Chubb has maintained industry-leading profit levels for years.
Trading at 13.4 times earnings, Chubb is one of the cheapest stocks in Berkshire’s portfolio. Don’t expect shares to keep up in a strong bull market, but this is a relatively reliable business to own if volatility kicks up. Berkshire owns nearly 7% of the company, equating to a 2.4% portfolio weighting, and it’s a stock to buy now.
Ryan Vanzo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Mastercard, and Visa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
