Warren Buffett Says He’ll Step Down as Berkshire Hathaway CEO at Year End, Taps Greg Abel as Successor
Warren Buffett confirmed Saturday he will step down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at year’s end, marketing the end of an era for the legendary investor who symbolizes the explosive growth and influence of equities markets since the 1970s.
Buffett broke the news Saturday during Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholders meeting in Omaha, Neb. He told the group that he hopes the Berkshire board of directors will selected Abel, a 25-year Berkshire veteran, to succeed him.
“The time has arrived where Greg should be the chief executive officer of the company at year end,” Buffett said. He received a rapturous standing ovation. “Drink your Coke and calm down,” Buffett finally said after a few minutes to quiet the crowd. He voted to not sell “a single share” in the company he has built for 60-plus years.
Abel has been tabbed for several years as the heir apparent to Berkshire’s 94-year-old leader. But Buffett’s timetable for the transition had been unclear until Saturday. Buffett noted that the news of his year-end target was coming as a surprise in the moment to Abel, who sat with Buffett on a dias at the CHI Health Center complex in Omaha as the two fielded questions from shareholders.
CNBC live streamed the event, known as “Woodstock for capitalists,” which also includes celebratory activities around the Omaha area and around Berkshire brands such as See’s Candies and Coca-Cola.
Buffett noted that only two of Berkshire’s 11 board members — his children Howie and Susie — were aware that he intended to break the news at the meeting. Buffett noted that the board will meet on Sunday to discuss the transition. He predicted they would take action at the following board meeting in a few months. Buffett made it clear he sees no roadblocks to Abel taking the job.
“I think they’ll be unanimously in favor of it, and that would mean that at year-end Greg would be the chief executive officer of Berkshire. I would still hang around and conceivabley useful in a few cases but he final word would be what Greg said,” he said.
More to come
