Berkshire shares left behind as S&P rallies to record high

Optimism that the U.S. conflict with Iran is approaching a resolution helped lift the S&P 500 index to its first close above 7100.

The benchmark is up more than 9% so far this month as fears about global conflict, earnings, AI, and inflation all eased since the S&P hit its lowest level of the year in late March, when it was approaching a 10% correction.

It's one of the market's fastest turnarounds in at least 36 years.

But while the overall market was soaring, Berkshire wasn't doing much of anything, as its A and B shares slipped to month-to-date drops of just under 1%.

Warren Buffett Watch Graph
At the close on March 31, Berkshire shares were almost exactly even with the S&P with year-to-date losses of 4.7%.

Warren Buffett Watch Graph
The day before, Berkshire B was running 1.8 percentage points ahead of the S&P, its biggest lead of the year.

Today, it closed 9.7 percentage points behind the index, its biggest gap so far in 2026.

Warren Buffett Watch Graph
On their own terms, Berkshire shares have not been performing well since they closed at record highs on May 2, 2025, just before Warren Buffett announced he would be stepping down as CEO at the end of that year.

Warren Buffett Watch Graph
While they are around 3% above their early-August lows, both classes are now down a bit more than 12% since Buffett's announcement.

 
Berkshire's financial history gets an update

With Berkshire's annual shareholders meeting now just two weeks away, this is the time of year to publish books about Buffett and his company.

Warren Buffett Watch Graph
"The Complete Financial History of Berkshire Hathaway, Second Edition" will be out on April 28 from Pan Macmillan's Harriman House.

The update will include a full analysis of the company's first six decades, covering events through 2024.

Author Adam Mead tells me there will also be some thoughts about 2025 in the introduction.