4 Stocks Warren Buffett Is Likeliest to Sell in 2021
Few if any investors can hold a candle to Warren Buffett's investing track record over the past six-plus decades. Beginning with $10,000 in seed capital in the 1950s, the CEO of conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A)(NYSE: BRK-B) has seen his net worth balloon to nearly $89 billion. Mind you, this figure doesn't include the $37 billion he's generously donated to various charities since 2006.
He's also done quite well for Berkshire Hathaway's shareholders. Since the mid-1960s, more than $400 billion in value has been created, with the company's stock
Suffice it to say, when Buffett speaks, Wall Street listens.
While the Oracle of Omaha's
Wells Fargo
First up is money-center bank Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), which Buffett and his team have been paring down for years. Back in early 2017, Berkshire Hathaway owned close to 480 million shares of Wells Fargo. But as of the end of September, Buffett's company had reduced its stake to a little more than 127 million shares.
Although Buffett has always been a big fan of
In 2017, Wells Fargo concluded an internal investigation that uncovered the
While Warren Buffett isn't the type of investor to slow-step his exit from a position, reducing a nearly 480 million-share stake doesn't happen overnight. I'm expecting we'll see an ongoing paring down of this position in 2021.
Charter Communications
Another Buffett stock that will probably be reduced in 2021 is cable and broadband giant Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR).
Unlike Wells Fargo, which has been a disaster for the past couple of years, Charter Communications has returned triple-digits for Berkshire Hathaway. The cable and broadband business typically provides predictable cash flow thanks to its subscription-focused business model. And it certainly hasn't hurt that Charter has spent billions of dollars repurchasing its stock. Buffett has always had a soft spot for share buybacks.
However, Berkshire Hathaway has also
Furthermore, the prospect of higher corporate tax rates under the Biden administration could reduce operating cash flow and slow Charter's ability to buy back its stock. These buybacks have been the company's key growth driver for years.
Biogen
Biotech blue chip Biogen (NASDAQ: BIIB) (say that three time fast) might also be given the heave-ho by midyear.
Biogen was added last year, most likely by Warren Buffett's investing lieutenants, Todd Combs and Ted Weschler. I say likely, because Buffett has never been a fan of keeping up with clinical trials or patent cliffs. My suspicion is Combs and Weschler saw value in Biogen's existing assets as well as the potential of experimental Alzheimer's disease drug aducanumab.
Unfortunately,
The other issue is that a committee of outside experts
JPMorgan Chase
Lastly, don't be surprised if Buffett and his team give the boot to money-center bank JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM).
The
Perhaps the bigger mystery is why JPMorgan Chase is on the chopping block. This is a well-capitalized big bank with solid return on assets and a transparent CEO in Jamie Dimon.
Perhaps the answer is that Buffett has fancied Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) as his preferred money-center bank throughout the decade. Last year, Berkshire received the OK from the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond to increase its stake in BofA to as high as 24.9%. On the basis of
10 stocks we like better than JPMorgan Chase
When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*
David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the
*Stock Advisor returns as of November 20, 2020