It's no secret that Warren Buffett is the biggest individual shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A -0.28%) (BRK.B -0.68%). Berkshire ranks as the sixth largest S&P 500 stock based on market cap. As of March 8, Buffett owned shares that controlled roughly 31.5 of the voting interest in the giant conglomerate. That effectively makes him Berkshire's controlling shareholder.
But Berkshire isn't the only huge company for which the multibillionaire sits in the catbird seat. Buffett also owns more of these eight stocks than anyone on the planet.
Buffett's eight-pack
Buffett wrote in his latest letter to Berkshire shareholders that the S&P 500 generated $1.8 trillion in earnings in 2021. He didn't have the final numbers for 2022 when he wrote the letter, so he used the 2021 figures. Buffett noted that only 128 of those S&P 500 companies (including Berkshire) posted earnings of at least $3 billion. He then stated that Berkshire was the largest shareholder of eight of those big companies. Here they are:
| Stock | Shares owned by Berkshire Hathaway | Stake owned by Berkshire Hathaway |
|---|---|---|
| Occidental Petroleum (OXY -0.09%) | 208,040,405 | 23.1% |
| American Express (AXP 0.07%) | 151,610,700 | 20.4% |
| Paramount Global (PARA -0.47%) | 93,637,189 | 15.4% |
| Moody's (MCO -0.25%) | 24,669,778 | 13.5% |
| Bank of America (BAC -0.13%) | 1,032,852,006 | 12.9% |
| HP (HPQ 1.55%) | 120,952,818 | 12.3% |
| The Coca-Cola Company (KO 1.50%) | 400,000,000 | 9.2% |
| Chevron (CVX 0.44%) | 167,353,771 | 8.8% |
Data source: CNBC.
Keep in mind that these eight only included companies with profits of $3 billion or more in 2021. Berkshire also has huge stakes in several other companies that didn't achieve that threshold.
Biggest recent winners
Most of Buffett's eight giants were losers last year. However, two of them delivered sizzling returns. Considering how oil prices rose so much in 2022, they were unsurprisingly both oil stocks. Occidental skyrocketed 117% last year, while Chevron soared close to 53%.
It's a different story so far in 2023. Chevron and Occidental stocks have fallen year to date. Paramount Global is the only member of Buffett's "eight pack" that has generated a double-digit percentage return at this point. Three of the other stocks are up by smaller amounts.
The best picks for the future
Which of Buffett's eight giants are the best picks for investors? I think that two especially stand out.
Bank of America's shares have plunged this year because of the turmoil in the banking industry. However, BofA belongs to the group of "too big to fail" banks that have plenty of liquidity. The current sell-off presents a great buying opportunity for the stock, in my opinion.
Actually, Bank of America is benefiting from Silicon Valley Bank's failure. The Boston Globe recently reported that BofA added more than $15 billion in new deposits after the SVB debacle.
I also expect Occidental stock to perform well. So does Buffett, apparently: He's continued to buy the oil stock hand over fist. Occidental's share price has declined this year with oil prices sliding. However, some experts predict that oil prices will rebound sharply by this summer. I suspect those predictions will prove to be accurate.
Buffett's buying could boost Occidental's share price as well. Last year, Berkshire obtained regulatory approval to acquire up to 50% of Occidental. Its stake is currently less than half of that amount.
