Warren Buffett's Portfolio Over The Years

Warren Buffett, through his conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, has built one of the most remarkable investment portfolios in financial history. Over seven decades, he has made bold bets, scored legendary wins, absorbed costly mistakes, and continuously evolved his strategy. This comprehensive guide tracks every major chapter of the Warren Buffett portfolio over the years — decade by decade — including his greatest triumphs, worst blunders, key purchases, and notable sells.

1950s–1960s: The Early Years — Value Hunting and a Pivotal Bet

Buffett began his investing career steeped in the teachings of Benjamin Graham. He hunted for deeply undervalued “cigar butt” stocks. His early partnership years produced extraordinary returns. However, two investments from this era stand out as foundational to everything that followed.

1951 — GEICO (First Purchase): As a young Columbia student, Buffett visited GEICO’s headquarters. He became convinced of its superior direct-to-consumer insurance model. He invested $10,000 — about 65% of his net worth at the time. This early conviction would pay off spectacularly decades later.
1964 — American Express (Salad Oil Scandal Buy): When American Express was rocked by the infamous salad oil scandal, the stock cratered. Buffett went against the crowd. He invested roughly $13 million after personally verifying that consumers still trusted the Amex brand. That bet eventually grew to over $20 billion in value.
1965 — Berkshire Hathaway Acquisition: Buffett began buying shares of a struggling New England textile company. He later admitted this was a mistake driven by emotion. Nevertheless, he transformed it into the holding company that would anchor his entire empire.

1970s: Building the Foundation — Media and Insurance

The 1970s marked Buffett’s transition from pure stock-picking to acquiring entire businesses. He zeroed in on media and insurance. These were industries with durable competitive advantages and strong cash flows.

Key 1970s Purchases

1972 — See’s Candies: Encouraged by Charlie Munger, Buffett paid $25 million for See’s Candies. The price seemed expensive at the time — 300% of book value. It turned out to be transformational. See’s generated over $2 billion in cumulative profits for Berkshire. Consequently, it taught Buffett the value of paying a fair price for a wonderful business.
1973 — The Washington Post Company: Buffett began accumulating shares of The Washington Post. At the time, the entire company traded for less than the value of its individual newspaper properties. He became one of the largest shareholders. The investment became a 27x return over the following years.
1976 — GEICO (Second Purchase — Distressed Rescue): When GEICO teetered on the edge of bankruptcy, Buffett stepped in again. He purchased $4.1 million in common stock and helped stabilize the company. By 1980, Berkshire had invested $45.7 million and held a 33% stake. Buffett finally acquired the remaining 49% of GEICO in 1995 for $2.3 billion.
1977 — Buffalo Evening News: Berkshire purchased the Buffalo Evening News for $32.5 million. Despite a brutal circulation battle early on, it eventually became a profitable monopoly newspaper and a steady cash generator.
1979 — Capital Cities / ABC: Buffett began building a position in Capital Cities Communications. The media company would later acquire ABC. This stake became enormously profitable.

1980s: The Coca-Cola Era — Brand Moats and Compounding Power

By the 1980s, Buffett had fully embraced Charlie Munger’s philosophy. The approach was simple: buy exceptional businesses at fair prices, then hold forever. His most iconic investment came from this decade.

1987 — Salomon Inc. (12% Stake): Buffett invested $700 million in Salomon Brothers preferred stock. This later became one of his biggest headaches. A Treasury auction scandal in 1991 forced him to personally step in as interim chairman. The investment was ultimately salvageable, but the experience was stressful and time-consuming.
1988–1989 — Coca-Cola ($1.3 Billion Purchase): After the 1987 stock market crash, Buffett spent approximately $1.3 billion accumulating a roughly 7% stake in Coca-Cola. This is widely considered his single greatest stock investment. Today, Berkshire earns over $816 million per year in dividends from Coca-Cola alone.

1990s: Mistakes, Insurance Giants, and Utilities

The 1990s brought Buffett some of his best insurance deals. Unfortunately, they also included his worst investment mistake ever.

The Worst Deal Ever: Dexter Shoe

1993 — Dexter Shoe (Worst Investment Ever): Buffett paid $433 million in Berkshire Hathaway stock for Dexter Shoe. It quickly became worthless as cheap foreign competition destroyed its competitive advantage. The true cost was catastrophic. By using Berkshire stock instead of cash, Buffett gave away 1.6% of Berkshire Hathaway. He has repeatedly called Dexter Shoe his worst investment ever — his “most gruesome mistake.”

Major 1990s Acquisitions

1995 — GEICO (Full Acquisition): Berkshire bought the remaining 49% of GEICO it didn’t already own for $2.3 billion. Today, GEICO is one of the largest auto insurers in the United States.
1998 — General Re ($22 Billion Acquisition): Berkshire acquired General Re, a major reinsurance company. While the early years were rocky, it became a massive and reliable profit engine for Berkshire’s insurance float over time.
1999 — MidAmerican Energy Holdings: Berkshire acquired a controlling stake in MidAmerican Energy for approximately $2 billion. This marked the beginning of Buffett’s long-term bet on regulated utilities and energy infrastructure.

2000s: Crisis Investing and a Railroad Bet

The 2000s saw Buffett deploy capital opportunistically during times of market stress. This is a hallmark of his strategy. His biggest move of the decade was a bet on America’s infrastructure.

2008 — Goldman Sachs ($5 Billion Preferred Stock): At the height of the financial crisis, Berkshire invested $5 billion in Goldman Sachs preferred stock. The deal earned a 10% annual dividend. It also came with warrants to buy Goldman stock at a fixed price — a sweetheart deal only available to Buffett because of his reputation and capital.
2008 — General Electric ($3 Billion): Similarly, Berkshire invested $3 billion in GE preferred stock during the crisis, again earning 10% annual dividends. GE redeemed the investment in 2011.
2009 — Burlington Northern Santa Fe ($34 Billion): Buffett called the BNSF railroad purchase his “all-in bet on the American economy.” Railroads move roughly 40% of U.S. freight. BNSF is the nation’s largest railroad. As a result, this turned out to be an excellent long-term investment in critical infrastructure.

2010s: Tech Awakening, a Big Mistake, and an Even Bigger Win

The 2010s were defined by two divergent tech bets. IBM turned out to be a loss. Apple, in contrast, became a generational win. Additionally, a massive industrial acquisition rounded out the decade.

2011 — IBM (Started Buying): Buffett began purchasing IBM shares, eventually investing over $10 billion. He viewed IBM as an entrenched enterprise technology provider. However, IBM continued to struggle competitively. Buffett exited the position by 2018 at a loss, acknowledging he had misjudged the business.
2015 — Precision Castparts ($37.2 Billion): Berkshire’s largest acquisition ever. Precision Castparts manufactures aerospace and industrial components. Unfortunately, the business was significantly impacted by COVID-19’s collapse in air travel, leading to massive write-downs. Buffett admitted he overpaid.
2016 — Apple (Started Buying): Despite a career of avoiding tech stocks, Buffett’s team began accumulating Apple. He came to view Apple not as a tech company, but as a consumer brand with extraordinary customer loyalty and massive free cash flow. Apple grew to become Berkshire’s largest equity holding by far.
2016 — Airlines (Delta, American, Southwest, United): Berkshire took roughly $7–8 billion in stakes across the four major U.S. airlines. When COVID-19 devastated air travel in 2020, Buffett sold all four positions at a loss. He admitted the airline industry had fundamentally changed.

2020s: Big Trims, New Bets, and Going Global

The 2020s have been the most active period of the Warren Buffett portfolio over the years in terms of reshaping. Buffett has selectively trimmed mature winners, cut losers decisively, and placed new bets in energy, international markets, and consumer brands.

2020–2022: Exits, Energy, and Japan

2020 — Airlines Sold (All Four): Berkshire sold all airline holdings during the COVID-19 crisis, crystallizing losses. Buffett acknowledged the business environment had changed too dramatically.
2020 — Japanese Trading Companies (5% Stakes Each): In a surprise move, Berkshire quietly accumulated over 5% stakes in each of Japan’s five largest trading conglomerates: Itochu, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo, and Marubeni. These diversified, asset-rich companies trade at low valuations and pay strong dividends. Berkshire has since increased these stakes beyond 8–9%.
2022 — Occidental Petroleum (Major Position Build): Berkshire became the largest shareholder in Occidental Petroleum, accumulating over 20% of the company. This was a major energy bet as oil prices surged. Berkshire also holds Occidental preferred stock and warrants from an earlier deal.
2022 — TSMC (~$4.1 Billion): Berkshire purchased approximately $4.1 billion in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC). However, Buffett sold almost the entire position within a year, citing geopolitical risk between Taiwan and China. It was a rare short-term trade for Berkshire.

2022–2025: New Positions and Major Reductions

2022 — Paramount Global ($2.6 Billion): Berkshire took a $2.6 billion position in Paramount Global. The bet didn’t pan out — streaming competition decimated Paramount’s business. Consequently, Berkshire exited in 2024 at a significant loss. Buffett called it a mistake.
2022 — HP Inc. (~$4.2 Billion): Berkshire built a roughly $4.2 billion position in HP Inc. The investment underperformed and Berkshire largely sold the position in 2023–2024.
2024 — Apple Reduced by ~50%: In a stunning move, Berkshire sold roughly half its Apple stake — about $75.5 billion worth of shares. Analysts speculate the move was partly tax-motivated given historically low capital gains rates at the time.
2024 — Bank of America and Citigroup Trimmed: Berkshire cut its Bank of America stake significantly and reduced its Citigroup position, reflecting caution toward the banking sector.
2024 — Constellation Brands (~$1.24 Billion): A new position in the alcoholic beverages company (Corona, Robert Mondavi). This is a classic Buffett consumer brand bet.
2024–2025 — Domino’s Pizza and Pool Corporation: Buffett’s team added stakes in Domino’s Pizza and Pool Corporation. Both businesses have strong recurring revenue and brand advantages.

Warren Buffett’s Greatest Investments of All Time

Looking back at the Warren Buffett portfolio over the years, several investments stand out as truly exceptional. Each of these positions demonstrates a key principle of his approach.

Top Winners

Apple: Turned roughly $36 billion into $150+ billion in value at peak, generating enormous returns and buyback-driven per-share gains.
Coca-Cola: $1.3 billion invested in 1988–1989 now generates $816 million per year in dividends alone. Furthermore, the position has appreciated many times over.
GEICO: Decades of compounding insurance float turned this into one of the largest U.S. auto insurers and a core profit engine for Berkshire.
American Express: A $13 million contrarian bet has grown into a 21% ownership stake worth over $20 billion. Notably, this was made during a crisis when others were selling.
See’s Candies: A $25 million purchase generated over $2 billion in cumulative profits. In addition, it was the investment that taught Buffett to pay for quality.
BNSF Railroad: A reliable infrastructure giant generating billions in annual earnings for Berkshire every year.

Warren Buffett’s Worst Investments and Biggest Mistakes

Not every decision in the Warren Buffett portfolio over the years has been a success. In fact, some of his losses have been enormous — both financially and in terms of time and reputation.

Costly Errors and Lessons Learned

Dexter Shoe (1993): Paid $433 million in Berkshire stock for a company that quickly became worthless. The true cost in foregone Berkshire appreciation exceeded $17 billion. Buffett has repeatedly called this his worst deal ever.
Berkshire Hathaway Textile Business: Buffett has admitted that buying the original Berkshire textile mill was a mistake driven by personal ego. He spent years trying to salvage it before finally closing the textile operations in 1985.
IBM: Over $10 billion invested starting in 2011. Nevertheless, Buffett sold at a loss by 2018 after IBM continued to lose competitive ground.
Precision Castparts: The $37.2 billion acquisition was hit hard by COVID-19. Buffett acknowledged paying too much.
Airlines (2016–2020): $7–8 billion deployed across Delta, American, Southwest, and United. All positions were sold at a loss in 2020.
Paramount Global (2022–2024): A streaming-era bet that went wrong as Paramount struggled against Netflix and Disney+. Consequently, Berkshire exited at a significant loss.
Salomon Brothers (1987): The preferred stock deal led to a scandal that required Buffett to personally intervene as interim chairman, consuming enormous time and reputational risk.

Key Takeaways From Buffett’s Portfolio Evolution

Studying the Warren Buffett portfolio over the years reveals several consistent investment principles. First, he prefers businesses with durable competitive moats. Second, he values strong brand loyalty and reliable cash flows. Third, he insists on honest management. Moreover, Buffett is willing to admit mistakes quickly and move on. He has shown that even the world’s greatest investor makes costly errors. His evolution from a pure value investor to a quality-focused business buyer mirrors the influence of Charlie Munger. Additionally, his ability to hold wonderful businesses for decades — Coca-Cola, American Express, GEICO — is the real source of his compounding power.