Greg Abel, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, addresses shareholders at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting of Shareholders in Omaha, Nebraska, May 1, 2026.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
OMAHA, Nebraska — Stockholder shopping day is about to begin Berkshire HathawayAt the annual meeting, the mood was highly optimistic as new and returning investors weighed the company’s direction under the new CEO.
Shareholders in a visibly thin crowd Friday expressed doubt that Greg Abel, who took over as CEO in January, will command the stage by telling the same story that Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger used to capture tens of thousands of attendees for decades. At the same time, they also expressed their confidence in Buffett who was chosen to take over the organization, as the billionaire investor has been praising Abel for 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 a good guy — and he’s been tested over the years by a lot of people — but he’s a good man at the right time.”
Hagstrom, who wrote about Buffett’s investment principles in “The Warren Buffett Way,” said Abel will bring operational expertise that will align with Berkshire’s future.
That confidence in Buffett’s choice was echoed in the convention center. Peter Yang, a global business owner who traveled 18 hours from Hong Kong to Omaha, was attending the meeting for the first time. He bought shares in Berkshire last year after Buffett signed off on his plan to step down as CEO. Yang said he was comfortable with the change, noting that Buffett’s endorsement of Greg Abel gave him confidence in the succession.
“I trust Greg because Warren wouldn’t hand over the reins to someone who can’t work. I don’t care about the company,” said Yang.
Like other shareholders, Kim Shannon, founder and CO-CIO of Sionna Investment Managers, a Toronto-based real estate holding company, expressed doubt that Abel would grace the stage like Buffett and Munger did but said he nevertheless expressed confidence that Berkshire’s goals would continue.
“I think we will be very careful about the legacy, but I think some of his comments in this year’s annual report, about the legacy suggest that it was planned to stand the test of time,” said Shannon. “And we’ll find out later.”
“For institutional investors like myself, the reason to be here is not just what happens on stage during the day at the annual meeting, it’s about meeting your peers on the team,” Shannon said. “And, for me, it’s already a win, and tomorrow might be a bonus.”
The official pivot
Among the first-time attendees was a farmer in his 60s from Wahoo, Neb., who said he made the trip after buying Berkshire stock five years ago. He expressed his undying confidence in Buffett and said that he sees Abel as a great fit to step into his long-time right-hand man.
Still, he cited growing economic pressures, including inflation and affordability, as being at the forefront, adding that he hopes Abel will face those challenges head on as he moves forward.
On the east coast, Wanda Lee and Susan Chan decided to skip the conference this year and broadcast it instead from Chan’s home in Asbury Park, NJ. The two friends have been attending the annual meeting regularly for nearly 15 years, leaving their husbands at home for a girls’ trip to Omaha. But Lee said they are pausing this year as they consider a leadership change, although they expressed their belief that Buffett had good judgment in choosing Abel. And he has no plans to liquidate his Berkshire Class B shares, which he first invested in 17 years ago.
“Saturday marks the official pivot at Berkshire Hathaway,” said Hagstrom of EquityCompass Investment Management. “And the whole world will see it.”
