Berkshire investors weigh future under new CEO Greg Abel

OMAHA, Nebraska — At the shareholder shopping day that kicks off Berkshire Hathaway‘s annual meeting, the mood in the air was cautiously optimistic as new and returning investors weighed the company’s direction under a new chief executive.

Shareholders in a noticeably thinner crowd Friday expressed skepticism that Greg Abel, who took over as CEO in January, will command the stage with the same storytelling and wit that Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger used to enrapture tens of thousands of attendees for decades. At the same time, they also expressed confidence in Buffett’s pick to take over the conglomerate, as the billionaire investor has been effusive in his praise for Abel over the years.

“I spent a lot of time studying Greg,” said Robert Hagstrom, chief investment officer at EquityCompass Investment Management. “I think he’s not only the right guy — and he’s been vetted for so many years by so many people — but he’s the right guy at the right time.”

Hagstrom, who wrote on Buffett’s investing principles in “The Warren Buffett Way,” has said that Abel will bring an operational expertise that will align with Berkshire’s future.

That confidence in Buffett’s pick was echoed through the convention center. Peter Yang, an international trade business owner who traveled 18 hours from Hong Kong to Omaha, was attending the gathering for the first time. He bought Berkshire shares last year after Buffett signaled his plan to step down as chief executive. Yang said he’s at ease with the transition, noting that Buffett’s endorsement of Greg Abel gives him confidence in the succession.

“I have confidence in Greg because Warren wouldn’t hand over the reins to someone who isn’t capable. I’m not concerned about the company,” Yang said.

Like other shareholders, Kim Shannon, founder and co-CIO of Sionna Investment Managers, a boutique asset management firm based in Toronto, expressed skepticism that Abel will be as entertaining on stage as Buffett and Munger have been but said that she nevertheless expressed confidence that the principles of Berkshire will continue.

“I think we’ll be all cautious about the legacy continuing, but I think some of his comments in the annual report this year, about continuing the legacy suggests that it was structured to withstand the test of time,” said Shannon. “And we’ll find out over time.”

“For institutional investors like myself, the reason for being here is not just what happens on stage during the day at the annual meeting, it’s about meeting your peers in the group,” Shannon also said. “And so, for me, it’s already been a win, and tomorrow may be a bonus.”

The official pivot

Among the first-time attendees was a farmer in her 60s from Wahoo, Neb., who said she made the trip after buying Berkshire stock five years ago. She expressed unwavering confidence in Buffett and said she views Abel as a trusted successor who has long served as Buffett’s right-hand man.

Still, she pointed to mounting economic pressures, including inflation and affordability, as top of mind, adding that she hopes Abel will address those challenges more directly as he steps further into the spotlight.

Over on the East Coast, Wanda Lee and Susan Chan decided to skip the conference this year and stream it instead from Chan’s home in Asbury Park, N.J. The two friends have been going to the annual meeting off and on for roughly 15 years, leaving their husbands at home for a girls’ trip to Omaha. But Lee said that they’re taking a pause this year as they process the leadership transition, though they expressed faith that Buffett has good judgment in choosing Abel. She also has no plans on getting rid of her Berkshire Class B shares, which she first invested in 17 years ago.

“Saturday begins the official pivot in Berkshire Hathaway,” EquityCompass Investment Management’s Hagstrom said. “And the whole world is going to get to see it.”