After the Buffett era: the first 13F filing. Berkshire bought Delta Air Lines and GOOG, and realized gains on Chevron

According to the latest filed 13F institutional holdings report, Berkshire Hathaway made a major asset reshuffle in the first quarter of 2026—its first scorecard after the new CEO, Greg Abel, fully took over investment decision-making. The most closely watched moves include deploying $2.6 billion to re-enter the airline sector by initiating a new position in Delta Air Lines, as well as significant share swaps across the technology and traditional retail sectors. With Abel taking the helm and former portfolio manager Todd Combs stepping down, this holdings report objectively reflects Berkshire’s structural adjustments under the new leadership team in response to global geopolitical risks and macroeconomic variables.

“Post-Buffett era” first stock-holding disclosure

Warren Buffett stepped down as CEO at the end of 2025 and handed the reins to Greg Abel, while remaining as chairman to support operations.

Berkshire Hathaway recently released its 2026 first-quarter 13F holdings report, viewed by the market as the first key document entering the “post-Buffett era,” and seen as an important signal of the investment direction of the new management team.

Berkshire builds back positions in the airline industry by buying Delta Air Lines

In this quarter, Berkshire invested about $2.6 billion to buy nearly 39.8 million shares of Delta Air Lines, gaining roughly a 6.1% stake and becoming a major shareholder of the company. Although the current U.S.-Iran conflict has led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and rising international oil prices have generally put the airline industry under severe pressure from fuel costs—reportedly even causing Spirit Airlines to shut down operations due to a funding breakdown—Berkshire’s return to the airline sector at this point, after it had fully exited in 2020, shows that the new management team is reassessing the long-term asset value of Delta Air Lines.

Increases Alphabet holdings while clearing Amazon

On the allocation of technology assets, Berkshire shows clear rotation within the same sector. In this quarter, Berkshire significantly increased its stake in Alphabet, adding nearly 36.4 million shares of Google’s parent company, pushing Alphabet up to become Berkshire’s seventh-largest holding. At the same time, Berkshire completely liquidated the Amazon shares it previously held. The market generally believes this is related to position adjustments after former portfolio manager Todd Combs left, since Amazon has long been widely regarded as part of the investment strategy led by Combs.

Higher-gain realization on Chevron holdings

As geopolitical tensions have driven up global oil prices, Chevron’s stock hit a historic high in March this year. Berkshire chose to take profits at this moment. In the quarter, it sold Chevron shares with an average price of about $182.59 per share, reducing its position by nearly one-third—selling roughly $8 billion worth of Chevron. After trimming, Berkshire still held about 4.2% of Chevron, maintaining its status as the fourth-largest institutional shareholder.

Clearing former managers’ holdings and initiating a new position in Macy’s

This report also reflects the effects of governance transition within Berkshire. After portfolio manager Todd Combs moved to JPMorgan, CEO Abel fully liquidated in the quarter the holdings he previously managed, including Visa, Mastercard, Domino’s Pizza, and UnitedHealth Group, which has been tested by changes in U.S. government payment policies. On the other hand, Berkshire went against the trend to initiate a new position in traditional retailer Macy’s, reflecting that while it is streamlining its holdings, it continues to seek physical consumer targets with turnaround potential and strong Sales Outlook.

This article, Berkshire’s first 13F in the post-Buffett era: Berkshire buys Delta Air Lines and GOOG, profits from cashing out Chevron, first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.