Berkshire Hathaway Exits Entire 5 Million-Share UnitedHealth Stake in Q1
Berkshire Hathaway sold its entire 5 million-share UnitedHealth stake in Q1 2026, exiting a position opened in August 2025 after UNH shares fell over 50%. UnitedHealth shares have recovered roughly 20% in 2026, with first-quarter results beating expectations and a raised full-year profit forecast.
1. Berkshire Hathaway Exits UNH Stake
In Q1 2026 Berkshire Hathaway sold its entire 5 million-share UnitedHealth holding that it built in August 2025 when UNH shares had tumbled more than 50%, marking a full exit from the health insurer after its stock fell over 30% in 2025.
2. Portfolio Repositioning Under Greg Abel
Under CEO Greg Abel’s leadership, Berkshire rebalanced its equity portfolio by exiting positions in Amazon, Visa, Mastercard, Domino’s Pizza, Aon and Pool and deploying $2.65 billion into Delta Air Lines while tripling its Alphabet stake.
3. UnitedHealth’s Financial Turnaround
UnitedHealth reported Q1 results that beat expectations, raised its full-year profit forecast and announced plans to eliminate prior authorization requirements for 30% of healthcare services by year-end 2026, reflecting improved medical cost management.
4. UNH’s Recovery and Challenges
Despite a 20% year-to-date share recovery, UnitedHealth has navigated CEO deaths, management changes, surging medical costs and a federal probe, with actions by new leadership aiming to restore investor confidence.