US Stock Market: Berkshire shares rally on strong Q2 results, accelerating capital deployment

Berkshire Hathaway shares climbed to their highest level since Warren Buffett announced his departure as chief executive in May 2025, after successor Greg Abel began deploying the conglomerate’s vast cash reserves and quarterly results exceeded analysts’ expectations, as per a Reuters report.

The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate’s cash and cash equivalents fell to $364.7 billion as of June 30, from a record $380.2 billion three months earlier, Berkshire said in its quarterly report on Saturday.

Berkshire repurchased $4.5 billion of its own shares during the second quarter and invested $23.5 billion in other stocks. The purchases included a roughly $10 billion investment in Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube.


The company continued deploying capital after the quarter ended, spending at least $10.1 billion in July on share buybacks and the acquisition of homebuilder Taylor Morrison, according to Reuters.

The increased use of Berkshire’s cash pile marks a shift from the more cautious capital deployment approach seen during Buffett’s final years as CEO. Abel took over as chief executive after Buffett stepped down following six decades at the helm.

Berkshire’s second-quarter operating profit rose 16% to $12.98 billion, helped by stronger contributions from its railroad, service and some insurance operations. The gains offset higher accident claims and increased advertising expenses at Geico, the group’s auto insurer.

Net income more than doubled to $25.67 billion, boosted by paper gains on investments including Alphabet and Apple. Revenue increased 10%, marking a stronger growth period after more than two years of largely stagnant revenue.

The results prompted Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and UBS to raise their price targets for Berkshire shares. KBW maintained an underperform rating, citing macroeconomic uncertainty and pricing pressures in property and casualty insurance, while UBS retained a buy rating, Reuters said.

Berkshire’s Class A shares rose as much as 3.3% to $806,102.81 in morning trading, while Class B shares gained as much as 3.1% to $537.74. According to Reuters, both share classes were trading at their highest levels since May 2, 2025, the final trading day before Buffett announced that he would step down as CEO.

The rally suggests investors are responding positively to Abel’s early efforts to put Berkshire’s enormous liquidity to work while maintaining the conglomerate’s longstanding focus on disciplined capital allocation.