Greg Abel's First Significant Move Since Warren Buffett's Retirement Was Likely Just Revealed by One of Berkshire Hathaway's Largest Holdings

One of Wall Street's trillion-dollar companies is in truly uncharted territory. When 2025 came to a close, so did billionaire Warren Buffett's tenure as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B). In the roughly six decades the Oracle of Omaha held the reins, he oversaw a cumulative return in his company's Class A shares (BRK.A) of almost 6,100,000%.

Although Buffett remains chairman of the board for Berkshire Hathaway, the company he helped build alongside the late Charlie Munger is now being overseen on a day-to-day basis by Greg Abel. The latter had previously been the vice chairman of Berkshire's non-insurance operations since early 2018.

In many ways, Abel has vowed to uphold the principles Warren Buffett held dear. For instance, he's a staunch value investor with an eye for long-term investments and a love of share buybacks (when they make financial sense).

Image source: Getty Images.

But what professional and everyday investors alike are waiting for is Abel to make his first significant move as Berkshire's new boss.

Despite his company sitting on nearly $382 billion in combined cash, cash equivalents, and U.S. Treasuries, as of the end of September, Abel's first move on the proverbial chess board doesn't look to be on the buy side.

Warren Buffett's successor appears ready to make a big move with Berkshire's investment portfolio

Admittedly, we as investors aren't certain of any moves by Berkshire Hathaway's greatest investment minds until Form 13Fs or Form 4s are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). However, there are clues that can, at times, foreshadow what's to come.

On Tuesday, Jan. 20, packaged foods and condiments giant Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ: KHC) filed a prospectus supplement with the SEC that outlined the possible sale by Berkshire Hathaway of up to 325,442,152 shares (from time to time) of its common stock. Abel's company currently holds 27.5% of the roughly 1.18 billion outstanding shares, with the $7.7 billion invested in Kraft Heinz accounting for 2.5% of Berkshire's nearly $309 billion investment portfolio.

Berkshire Hathaway might be getting ready to sell a lot of its Kraft Heinz stock. (Warren Buffett and Greg Abel previously expressed disappointment in the company's plan to split up.) pic.twitter.com/eqE3Kl4DMC

-- Kevin Carpenter (@kejca) January 20, 2026

While there aren't any guarantees that Abel is going to green-light the sale of Kraft Heinz's shares, it's unlikely we'd have Kraft Heinz filing this prospectus supplement if significant selling activity wasn't expected in the not-too-distant future.

Moreover, both Warren Buffett and Greg Abel have been unhappy with the idea of Kraft Heinz splitting into two separate companies.

Berkshire and private-equity firm 3G Capital arranged the merger of Kraft Foods and Heinz in 2015. In September 2025, shortly after Kraft Heinz announced its intention to split into two companies -- one focused primarily on sauces and spreads, and the other comprising North American staple brands such as Oscar Mayer and Lunchables -- Buffett and Abel expressed their displeasure with the unwinding of this mammoth merger.

Despite Kraft Heinz cutting costs and selling off some of its well-known brands, innovation and organic growth have been lacking. Although separating into two publicly traded companies should make it easier for investors to track which brands are gaining momentum or struggling, it doesn't fix the company's growth/innovation issues.

While Warren Buffett had been seemingly reluctant to sell shares of Kraft Heinz for years -- attempting to dispose of Berkshire's hefty position would likely result in significant pressure on Kraft Heinz's stock -- Abel doesn't appear to have any reservations about meaningfully reducing his company's stake. This looks to be Abel's first major move as CEO... but far from his last.

Image source: Apple.

Apple and Bank of America, you may be next!

In addition to potentially selling a sizable portion of Berkshire's stake in Kraft Heinz, Abel is likely to continue reducing his company's exposure to its current No. 1 holding, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), and its No. 3 holding, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC).

Before the 95-year-old Warren Buffett called it a career as CEO, he oversaw big-time selling activity in Apple and Bank of America, the latter of which is more commonly known as "BofA." Between Sept. 30, 2023, and Sept. 30, 2025, Buffett sold 677.3 million shares of Apple, thereby reducing Berkshire's position by 74%. Meanwhile, he dumped 464.8 million shares of Bank of America from July 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2025, which cut his company's stake in BofA by 45%.

Aside from a favorable corporate income tax rate, this selling activity appears to have been spurred by notably higher valuations for both companies.

Valuation concerns are particularly apparent with Apple, whose trailing 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio clocked in at over 33, as of the closing bell on Jan. 20. When the Oracle of Omaha began building a position in Apple in the first quarter of 2016, he was paying roughly 10 to 15 times trailing 12-month earnings per share.

What makes Apple's premium valuation even more egregious is that its physical device sales have been predominantly stagnant over the last three years. Despite minimal sales growth outside of its subscription-driven services segment, its P/E multiple has notably expanded. The value-focused Abel is unlikely to see much in Apple, beyond its market-leading share-repurchase program.

While valuation isn't as glaring a concern with Bank of America as it is with Apple, it's nevertheless a potential sell-side catalyst for Berkshire Hathaway's new boss.

When Warren Buffett shored up BofA's balance sheet in August 2011, Bank of America's common stock was valued at a 68% discount to its listed book value. As of the first week of January 2026, BofA stock had nearly reached a 50% premium to book.

Given that Bank of America is the most interest-sensitive of domestic money-center banks, and the Federal Reserve is in the midst of a rate-easing cycle, this is a notable premium for a bank whose net interest income could decline in the years to come.

Though everyone is waiting for Greg Abel's first purchase, it's his selling activity that could leave an indelible mark.

Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Sean Williams has positions in Bank of America. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple and Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool recommends Kraft Heinz. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.