Berkshire Hathaway bought 75 million additional Apple shares in the first three months of 2018, CEO Warren Buffett told CNBC on Thursday, signaling the billionaire investor's continuing confidence in Apple.

In February last year, Buffett revealed that his holding company held around 133 million shares in Apple prior to the company's record-breaking earnings results on January 31, 2017, worth over $17 billion at the time. Today it holds 240.3 million shares worth $42.5 billion.

warren buffett

"If you look at Apple, I think it earns almost twice as much as the second most profitable company in the United States," Buffett told CNBC.

Historically, Buffett has shied away from investing in technology companies, but the business magnate has suggested he sees Apple more as a consumer company. Reuters reports that Berkshire's latest Apple investment serves as a way of reducing the corporate group's $116 billion in cash and equivalents, without having to acquire a whole company.

Apple posted revenue of $61.1 billion and net quarterly profit of $13.8 billion in the first quarter of the year, up from revenue of $52.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $11.0 billion in the year-ago quarter. Apple said it will start a new share buyback authorization of $100 billion following the record revenue and profit numbers.

Top Rated Comments

Constable Odo Avatar
101 months ago
It's really odd how some old guy like Warren Buffett understands how Apple is being run and he's not even into tech. I know he was saying that he's not buying Apple stock just for quarterly iPhone sales. He's looking at a longer term picture. Yet, there's always these analysts and investors fretting and crying over how many iPhones are being sold and consider it some sort of financial disaster if Apple comes up a million short in a single quarter. Shouldn't most companies be judged by product sales for a full year and not just quarter to quarter.

I realize Apple might not perform like the FANG stocks do when it comes to share gains. Apple doesn't appear to have any double-digit growth in revenue. Maybe those times are gone forever. Still, there's no reason for analysts to be telling people to dump Apple stock and buy FANG stocks. Saying something like that is so stupid. Apple gives out pretty decent dividends. Most companies don't have double-digit revenue growth so it's like analysts are telling investors not to invest in companies that can't provide double-digit revenue growth and that's most of the companies on the planet.

For the most part, Buffett seems like a rather smart and conservative investor who buys stock based on a company's fundamentals instead of just quarterly sales. He seems like he's into Apple for the long haul and I hope he is. It will be interesting to see if Apple is able to outlast any of the FANG stocks that Wall Street constantly praises.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
adamjackson Avatar
101 months ago
Lol and at the peak, Carl Icahn held 3 million shares, right? Goes to show how different these investors are. Berkshire buys 75 million, doesn't tell Apple how to run the show. Icahn holds 3 million and every week spouts off about how badly Apple is being operated.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nunyabinez Avatar
101 months ago
Lol and at the peak, Carl Icahn held 3 million shares, right? Goes to show how different these investors are. Berkshire buys 75 million, doesn't tell Apple how to run the show. Icahn holds 3 million and every week spouts off about how badly Apple is being operated.
That has been the secret to Buffet’s success. He buys companies that are doing awesome and then lets the people who got them there keep running them.

If a company needed help making decsisons, Buffet wouldn’t take a second look at them.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Solomani Avatar
101 months ago
Dear Mister Buffet, Your Awesomeness, Pre-eminent Duke of Apple:

Please bring back the Mac Pro. Please tell your company (AAPL) that they cannot keep ignoring those beautiful Macs. Please tell your company to make Siri a lot better, and more competitive. We gave up on Cook, but maybe you could Make Apple Great Again, sir! Thank you for listening. :p

Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kingalexthe1st Avatar
101 months ago
It's really odd how some old guy like Warren Buffett understands how Apple is being run and he's not even into tech. I know he was saying that he's not buying Apple stock just for quarterly iPhone sales. He's looking at a longer term picture. Yet, there's always these analysts and investors fretting and crying over how many iPhones are being sold and consider it some sort of financial disaster if Apple comes up a million short in a single quarter. Shouldn't most companies be judged by product sales for a full year and not just quarter to quarter.

I realize Apple might not perform like the FANG stocks do when it comes to share gains. Apple doesn't appear to have any double-digit growth in revenue. Maybe those times are gone forever. Still, there's no reason for analysts to be telling people to dump Apple stock and buy FANG stocks. Saying something like that is so stupid. Apple gives out pretty decent dividends. Most companies don't have double-digit revenue growth so it's like analysts are telling investors not to invest in companies that can't provide double-digit revenue growth and that's most of the companies on the planet.

For the most part, Buffett seems like a rather smart and conservative investor who buys stock based on a company's fundamentals instead of just quarterly sales. He seems like he's into Apple for the long haul and I hope he is. It will be interesting to see if Apple is able to outlast any of the FANG stocks that Wall Street constantly praises.
Well said. Apple's P/E ratio is wonderfully low, and the fact it posts gains as it does for a $920 billion company is extraordinary. I think it's undervalued, and the only reason I'm not buying AAPL is because I'm already exposed to the tech sector and don't want to indulge.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IJ Reilly Avatar
101 months ago
Hmm, when these real professional type investors get involved it’s generally detrimental to ordinary shareholders - they’d much rather the stock cycled between $150 and $180 so they can buy and sell for a profit than it just keep going up...
This has never been Buffett's style. He's been a buy and hold "value" investor for decades, this is how he made his reputation and his billions. Now, suddenly he's a pumper and dumper? No, probably not.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
iphone 17 pro dark blue 1

iPhone 18 Pro Max Rumored to Deliver Next-Level Battery Life

Friday February 6, 2026 5:14 am PST by
The iPhone 18 Pro Max will feature a bigger battery for continued best-in-class battery life, according to a known Weibo leaker. Citing supply chain information, the Weibo user known as "Digital Chat Station" said that the iPhone 18 Pro Max will have a battery capacity of 5,100 to 5,200 mAh. Combined with the efficiency improvements of the A20 Pro chip, made with TSMC's 2nm process, the...