If any investor has stood the test of time, it’s Warren Buffett, and with good reason. For years, the “Oracle of Omaha” has had a rock star-like presence in the investing world, and his annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting draws thousands of loyal fans who are investors. They were stunned at this year’s meeting when Mr. Buffett announced that he would be stepping down as CEO of the investment giant at the end of the year. While he will remain Chairman of the Board and continue to have a voice in the day-to-day operations, his pre-announced successor, Greg Abel, will assume the CEO position at the end of the year. As 2025 winds down, Mr. Buffett will step away, making far fewer appearances and will not be onstage at the next shareholder meeting. Greg Abel will take the stage for the next meeting and write the annual shareholder letter.
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After trailing the S&P 500 badly in 2025, Berkshire Hathaway has cut its underperformance for 2025 from 12.2% to 4.3%.
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The stock began trading lower after Mr. Buffett announced his retirement at the shareholder meeting.
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With a gigantic cash pile of $381 billion, Berkshire Htahway will be ready to pounce if we have another dislocation like the Global Financial Crisis.
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Some investors get rich while others struggle because they never learned there are two completely different strategies to building wealth. Don’t make the same mistake, learn about both here.
Long-time investors and Buffett mavens are familiar with his quote, “His favorite holding for an S&P 500 stock is forever”, so it’s not surprising to report that for all of the success and stature Berkshire Hathaway has in the investment world, 5 top companies make up over 70% of the fund’s total holdings. While much more concentrated than most portfolio managers would ever consider, the strategy has worked for Berkshire Hathaway investors for years. It is likely to continue doing so in the future. The question many would ask, given his impending departure, is what dividend stocks are likely to remain in the portfolio for the long term? We screened the portfolio, and these longtime stalwarts, which all pay dividends, are likely to stay at the dance for decades to come.
There are few investors with the results and reputation that Mr. Buffett has garnered over the last 50 years. While investing has evolved over the past half-century, buying good companies with products and services recognized worldwide, while paying dividends, will always remain a timeless approach.
American Express Company is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation specializing in payment cards. This stock has performed strongly in 2025, offering a dividend yield of 0.88%. American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) is a globally integrated payments company that deals with card-issuing, merchant-acquiring, and card network businesses.
The financial giant posted strong third-quarter earnings per share of $4.14, exceeding analyst expectations of $3.99, representing a 19% year-over-year increase. Revenue grew 11% to $18.43 billion, surpassing the forecast of $18.05 billion, as net income increased 16% to $2.9 billion compared to last year.
The company offers products and services to customers worldwide, including consumers, small businesses, mid-sized companies, and large corporations.
Its segments include:
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U.S. Consumer Services (USCS)
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Commercial Services (CS)
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International Card Services (ICS)
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Global Merchant and Network Services (GMNS)
USCS offers travel and lifestyle services, as well as banking and non-card financing products.
CS offers payment, expense management, banking, and non-card financing products.
ICS provides services to international customers, including travel and lifestyle services, and manages certain international joint ventures and its loyalty coalition business.
GMNS operates a payments network that processes and settles card transactions, acquires merchants, and provides multichannel marketing programs, capabilities, services, and data analytics.
Berkshire Hathaway owns 151,610,700 shares, 21.6 % of American Express’s float, and 15.5% of the portfolio.
Wells Fargo has an Overweight rating with a $400 target price objective
Apple designs, develops, and sells consumer electronics, computer software, and online services, offering a small dividend of 0.38%. It’s almost hard to comprehend that the legacy technology giant, even after a recent sale of 20 million shares and a surge in sales over the last two years, still makes up a stunning 23.8% of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, which holds just under 2% of Apple’s stock. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide.
The company offers:
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The iPhone, a line of smartphones
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Mac, a line of personal computers
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iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets
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Wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod
Apple also offers AppleCare support and cloud services, as well as operates various platforms, including the App Store, which enables customers to discover and download applications and digital content, such as books, music, videos, games, and podcasts.
In addition, the company offers various services, such as:
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Apple Arcade, a game subscription service
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Apple Fitness+, a personalized fitness service
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Apple Music, which gives users a curated listening experience with on-demand radio stations
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Apple News+, a subscription news and magazine service
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Apple TV+, which offers exclusive original content
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Apple Card, a co-branded credit card
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Apple Pay, a cashless payment service
Wells Fargo has an Overweight rating with a $300 target price.
While Warren Buffett has trimmed his position over the last two years, this quality financial giant remains an exceptional long-term holding with a solid 2% dividend yield. Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a bank holding company and financial holding company that reported impressive Q3 results. Earnings per share of $1.06 vs. $0.95, as revenue of $28.24 billion vs. $27.5 billion beat analysts’ estimates. Profit rose 23% from a year earlier to $8.5 billion, and revenue grew 11% year-over-year, with EPS jumping 31%
Its segments include:
Consumer Banking segment offers a range of credit, banking, and investment products and services to consumers and small businesses.
The GWIM comprises two businesses: Merrill Wealth Management, which offers tailored solutions to meet clients’ needs through a comprehensive suite of investment management, brokerage, banking, and retirement products.
Bank of America Private Bank provides comprehensive wealth management solutions.
The Global Banking segment offers a range of lending-related products and services, including integrated working capital management and treasury solutions, as well as underwriting and advisory services.
The Global Markets segment offers sales and trading services, as well as research services, to institutional clients across fixed income, credit, currency, commodity, and equity markets.
Morgan Stanley has assigned an Overweight rating, accompanied by a $70 target price.
Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy company that is predominantly specialized in oil and gas. This integrated giant is a safer option for investors looking to position themselves in the energy sector and pays a substantial 4.42% dividend, which was raised by 5% earlier this year. Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) operates integrated energy and chemicals businesses worldwide through its subsidiaries.
The company operates in two segments:
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Upstream
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Downstream
The Upstream segment is involved in the following:
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Exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas
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Processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas
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Transportation of crude oil through pipelines, and transportation, storage
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Marketing of natural gas, as well as operating a gas-to-liquids plant
The Downstream segment engages in:
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Refining crude oil into petroleum products
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Marketing crude oil, refined products, and lubricants
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Manufacturing and marketing renewable fuels
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Transporting crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car
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Manufacturing and marketing of commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives
It also involves cash management, debt financing, insurance operations, real estate, and technology businesses.
Chevron Corporation announced in late 2023 that it had entered into a definitive agreement with Hess Corporation (NYSE: HES) to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Hess in an all-stock transaction valued at $53 billion, or $171 per share based on Chevron’s closing price on October 20, 2023. Under the terms of the agreement, Hess shareholders will receive 1.0250 shares of Chevron for each Hess share. The transaction’s total enterprise value, including debt, is $60 billion. The Federal Trade Commission approved the deal last October, and it is expected to close this fall.
Morgan Stanley has an Overweight rating with a target price of $190.
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. This company remains a top long-time holding of Warren Buffett. He owns a massive 400 million shares that have increased by a solid 11% in 2025 and pays a dependable 2.92% dividend. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world’s largest beverage company, offering consumers more than 500 sparkling and still brands.
Led by Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most valuable and recognizable brands, the Company’s portfolio features 20 billion-dollar brands, including:
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Diet Coke
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Coca-Cola Light
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Coca-Cola Zero Sugar
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Caffeine-free Diet Coke
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Cherry Coke
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Fanta Orange
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Fanta Zero Orange
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Fanta Zero Sugar
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Fanta Apple
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Sprite
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Sprite Zero Sugar
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Simply Orange
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Simply Apple
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Simply Grapefruit
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Fresca
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Schweppes
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Dasani
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Fuze Tea
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Glacéau Smartwater
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Glacéau Vitaminwater
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Gold Peak
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Ice Dew
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Powerade
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Topo Chico
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Minute Maid
Globally, they are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, ready-to-drink coffees, juices, and juice drinks.
Through the world’s most extensive beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the company’s beverages at a rate of over 1.9 billion servings per day. It’s also important to remember that the company owns 16% of Monster Beverage (NASDAQ: MNST), which continues to deliver strong financial results.
Bank of America has a Buy rating and set a target price of $80.