Warren Buffett is the richest wealth manager in the world, with a net worth of over $115 billion. He ranked #5 on the world’s real-time billionaires list published by Forbes. Buffett is often considered a “guru” in the investment world, is known for his value investing strategies and often focuses on investing in large-cap equities rather than trading speculative stocks.
He believes in purchasing securities and holding them indefinitely, thereby reaping the benefits of compounding capital gains. While Buffett openly says that he has made many mistakes during his career, “over time, it takes just a few winners to work wonders.”
Buffett’s investment portfolio might seem small and concentrated in industry leaders, but it has delivered stellar returns over the past few decades, propelling his net worth substantially.
Some of the top holdings in Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway follow.
Occidental Petroleum
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:OXY) is one of Buffett’s top oil holdings. Though many countries have pledged to reduce their oil consumption in the interest of lowering total carbon emissions, recent geopolitical events reveal that the demand for oil is here to stay, at least in the short term.
While the COVID-19 pandemic was a major roadblock for the oil sector, industry leaders quickly recuperated to generate record profits last year. OXY’s annual gross profit amounted to $24.57 billion for fiscal year 2022, reflecting a 50.8% rise year-over-year. Buffett owns over 224 million shares of OXY, valued at approximately $13.18 billion, as of June 30, 2023.
Occidental Petroleum’s efforts to restructure its operations in light of the global pledge to reduce carbon emissions could make it a promising stock to buy and hold. The company currently pledges to achieve net-zero emissions in its operations and energy use by 2040 and total net-zero carbon inventory by 2050. To this end, OXY acquired Carbon Engineering in August 2023.
UBS currently has a price target of $74 on OXY stock, which reflects a potential upside of nearly 21%. On the other hand, New York-based Susquehanna International Group has a positive rating on Occidental Petroleum stock with a price target of $78. This reflects a potential upside of over 27%.
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Kraft Heinz
Kraft Heinz Co. (NASDAQ:KHC) is another one of Buffett’s favorite stocks. The company has been benefitting from rising commodity prices over the past couple of years, raising its profit guidance for fiscal 2023. It expects its organic net sales to rise within the range of 4%-6% year-over-year in fiscal 2023.
“We laid out a series of action plans in the beginning of the year to drive market share and volume improvement, and I’m pleased to say we saw improvement throughout the quarter as our team executed against these plans. We will remain focused on our overall strategy to drive top-line profitable growth,” said Miguel Patricio, CEO and Chair of Kraft Heinz.
While Buffett said in 2019 that he “overpaid” for Kraft Heinz, he believes it to be a “very, very strong” brand name. He currently holds over 325 million shares of KHC, which are valued at over $11.56 billion (as of June 2023).
Bank of America currently has a “Buy” rating on KHC with a price target of $40, reflecting a potential upside of 25%. Britain-based multinational financial institution Barclays holds an “Equal-Weight” rating on Kraft Heinz, with a price target of $36. This reflects a potential upside of up to 12.5%.
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE:KO) is one of Buffett’s “secret sauce(s)” of his investment strategy, generating millions in passive income for his company, Berkshire Hathaway.
KO stock has delivered $704 million in dividend returns to Buffett’s company in 2022 and currently accounts for 5% of Berkshire Hathaway’s net worth. Apart from this, Buffett’s initial investment of $1.3 billion in Coca-Cola stock in 1994 is now valued at $25 billion (as of fiscal year 2022), reflecting over 1820% return on investment, not taking into account dividend returns.
While KO stock has delivered disappointing returns over the past year as it plunged by over 4% over the past year, its dividend returns compensate for poor share price performance. The stock currently pays $0.46 per share in dividends annually, yielding 3.26% on the current price.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 100 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in base metal and utility stocks, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 103.40 points at 24,542.48.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 192.31 points at 42,932.73. The S&P 500 index was up 7.14 points at 5,822.40, while the Nasdaq composite was down 9.03 points at 18,306.56.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.44 cents US on Tuesday.
The November crude oil contract was down 71 cents at US$69.87 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down eight cents at US$2.42 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$7.20 at US$2,686.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was up a penny at US$4.35 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 200 points in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets were also headed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 205.86 points at 24,508.12.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 336.62 points at 42,790.74. The S&P 500 index was up 34.19 points at 5,814.24, while the Nasdaq composite was up 60.27 points at 18.342.32.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.61 cents US compared with 72.71 cents US on Thursday.
The November crude oil contract was down 15 cents at US$75.70 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down two cents at US$2.65 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$29.60 at US$2,668.90 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents at US$4.47 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was little changed in late-morning trading as the financial sector fell, but energy and base metal stocks moved higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 0.05 of a point at 24,224.95.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 94.31 points at 42,417.69. The S&P 500 index was down 10.91 points at 5,781.13, while the Nasdaq composite was down 29.59 points at 18,262.03.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.71 cents US compared with 73.05 cents US on Wednesday.
The November crude oil contract was up US$1.69 at US$74.93 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was up a penny at US$2.67 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$14.70 at US$2,640.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up two cents at US$4.42 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 10, 2024.
