TLDR
- Berkshire Hathaway’s Q2 2026 net earnings rose 107.5% year-over-year to $25.7 billion
- Operating earnings climbed 16.3% to $12.9 billion in Q2
- Investment gains of $16.08 billion were driven by unrealized appreciation in key stock holdings
- Berkshire repurchased $4.53 billion of its own stock in Q2, bringing the first-half total to $4.76 billion
- Cash reserves swelled to a record $359.2 billion under CEO Greg Abel
Berkshire Hathaway posted a sharp jump in second-quarter profit on Saturday, with net earnings more than doubling to $25.67 billion from $12.37 billion in the same period last year.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc., BRK-A
Net earnings per average equivalent Class B share surged 107.8% to $11.91. On a Class A basis, the company earned $17,868 per share, up from $8,601 a year ago.
The headline number was heavily influenced by $16.08 billion in investment gains, largely from unrealized appreciation across Berkshire’s public equity portfolio. Top holdings including Apple, Alphabet, American Express, Bank of America, and Coca-Cola all contributed to those paper gains.
$BRK.B (Berkshire Hathaway) #earnings are out: pic.twitter.com/gDemMVDGuB
— The Earnings Correspondent (@earnings_guy) August 8, 2026
Operating earnings, which Warren Buffett long favored as a cleaner measure of business performance, rose 16.3% to $12.9 billion for the quarter.
Buybacks Pick Up
Berkshire repurchased $4.53 billion of its own stock during Q2, a step up from the quieter pace seen in Q1. That brought the total for the first half of 2026 to $4.76 billion.
Under Berkshire’s repurchase policy, buybacks only happen when management believes the stock is trading below its intrinsic value and cash reserves stay above a $30 billion floor.
The acceleration in buybacks came even as Berkshire’s cash pile hit a record $359.2 billion at the end of June. That signals CEO Greg Abel sees the current price as an opportunity to return value to investors.
First Half Results
For the first six months of 2026, net earnings surged 110.7% to $35.8 billion. Operating income advanced 16.9% to $24.3 billion.
Net earnings per average equivalent Class B share for the first half reached $7.87, up 110.8% from the prior year period.
Berkshire’s insurance float, which represents the net liabilities assumed under insurance contracts, stood at approximately $177.5 billion as of June 30. That was up around $1.1 billion from year-end 2025.
There were 1,431,693 Class A equivalent shares outstanding as of June 30, 2026, reflecting the impact of the buyback program.
The Q2 results were reported on Saturday, August 8, 2026.
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