Key facts
- Warren Buffett has stepped down from his leadership roles at Berkshire Hathaway after 60 years.
- Buffett once described his initial purchase of Berkshire Hathaway stock as the "dumbest stock" he ever bought.
- Buffett's net worth is estimated at $145 billion.
- Buffett acquired control of Berkshire Hathaway in 1965 after a dispute over stock price.
- Berkshire Hathaway generated $371.4 billion in revenue in 2025.
- From 1965 through the end of 2024, Berkshire Hathaway's stock grew more than 5.5 million percent.
Warren Buffett, one of the most successful investors of all time, has officially stepped down from his top leadership roles at Berkshire Hathaway after a 60-year tenure. He relinquished his position as chairman at the end of 2025, having previously stepped down as CEO, though he will continue to serve as a director.
Despite amassing a fortune of $145 billion through the conglomerate, Buffett once famously called his initial investment in Berkshire Hathaway the "dumbest stock" he ever bought. In 1962, Buffett sought to buy shares in the struggling textile company at a low price, planning to sell them back to the company. However, a dispute over the exact sale price—a difference of about 12.5 cents per share—led Buffett to instead buy control of the company and fire its CEO, Seabury Stanton.
Buffett acknowledged that the textile business itself was poor, but Berkshire Hathaway became the foundation for his subsequent investments, including insurance companies like National Indemnity, and major stakes in businesses such as GEICO, See's Candies, BNSF Railway, and Precision Castparts. While he noted that the textile operations were eventually shut down in 1985 and that focusing solely on insurance from the start could have made Berkshire Hathaway worth an additional $200 billion, the company ultimately became the vehicle for his immense wealth.
From 1965, when Buffett took control, through the end of 2024, Berkshire Hathaway's stock saw a growth of over 5.5 million percent. In 2025, the company reported $371.4 billion in revenue and $717.4 billion in shareholders' equity, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.1 trillion.