In his first quarter as the new CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK)(NYSE:BRK), Greg Abel made his presence felt. The new CEO, who replaced long time leader Warren Buffett, made multiple changes to the conglomerate's investment portfolio, including selling off stakes in two credit card companies.
Here's a look at the history of Berkshire Hathaway owning Visa Inc (NYSE:V) and Mastercard (NYSE:MA) stock and how much they gained during their time in the portfolio.
Visa Stake History
Abel sold off the entire positions in Visa and Mastercard in the first quarter of 2026, stocks that previously represented the 13th and 15th largest stock positions respectively at the end of 2025.
Visa stock was first bought by Berkshire Hathaway, then under the leadership of CEO Buffett, in the third quarter of 2011. The fund disclosed buying 2.29 million Visa shares on Nov. 14, 2011.
Over the years, Berkshire would buy Visa stock nine times, and sell the stock six times, according to data from Stock Circle.
This includes the conglomerate adding 573,000 more shares in the fourth quarter of 2011. Those first two buys were followed up by the conglomerate selling 2.53 million shares, or 88% of the position in the first quarter of 2012.
The fund would add to the Visa position in subsequent quarters, including a large 7.38 million share purchase in the first quarter of 2015.
Prior to the recent sale, the last Berkshire Visa transaction was selling 1.27 million shares in 2021.
Going back to the initial purchase of 2.29 million Visa shares in the third quarter of 2011. Those shares were bought at an average price in the $19.81 to $23.21 range, adjusted for a 2015 stock split.
The shares were sold in the first quarter of 2026 in a range of $295.52 to $357.56.
This means Berkshire Hathaway made between 1,173.2% and 1,704.9% on their initial Visa shares bought.
Mastercard Stake History
Mastercard stock was first bought by Berkshire Hathaway, then under the leadership of CEO Buffett, in the first quarter of 2011. The fund disclosed buying 216,000 Mastercard shares on in May, 2011.
Over the years, Berkshire would buy Mastercard stock seven times, and sell the stock eight times, according to data from Stock Circle.
This includes the conglomerate adding 3.65 million shares in the first quarter of 2014.
Prior to the recent sale, the last Berkshire Mastercard transaction was selling 302,000 shares in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Going back to the initial purchase of 216,000 Mastercard shares in the first quarter of 2011. Those shares were bought at an average price in the $22.09 to $25.61 range, adjusted for a 2014 stock split.
The shares were sold in the first quarter of 2026 in a range of $484.24 to $580.34.
This means Berkshire Hathaway made between 1,790.8% and 2,527.2% on their initial Mastercard shares bought.
What's Next for Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire announced new positions in several stocks in the first quarter and also increased their stake in the New York Times (NYSE:NYT) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) significantly.
The next 13F for the second quarter could show if Abel is continuing to cut ties with some of the older positions to make room for new names.
Berkshire's cash pile continues to grow, allowing the company to be selective for acquisitions and/or large stakes in companies.
The conglomerate has not exited the credit card business completely. While the company sold Visa and Mastercard stocks in the first quarter, American Express (NYSE:AXP) ranked as the second largest holding for the investment portfolio at the end of the quarter, with a position worth $45.9 billion.
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