Companies that offer a broad mix of money services at once, rather than sticking to just banking, lending or investing.
Contains
News movingDiversified Financial Services
United States
Diversified Financial Services▲
Corpay Adds AI Agents to Corpay Complete Platform
Corpay has expanded its Corpay Complete platform with several new AI agents that automate expense analysis, voice driven expense creation, virtual card issuance, and transaction coding across corporate, fleet, and vendor payments. The new tools are being rolled out to eligible Corpay Complete customers this month and are designed to centralize spend data, strengthen finance grade controls, and streamline workflows for finance teams. The rollout lands on top of earlier product updates in April and July, and comes as Corpay has raised its 2026 cash EPS guidance to $27.35 and plans to use divestiture proceeds for repurchases, alongside roughly $15b of available capital for buybacks and targeted corporate payments deals. Corpay closed at $394.60, while the most followed narrative pegs fair value at $461.00, implying 14.4% undervaluation, though on a P/E lens CPAY trades at 22.9x versus a US Diversified Financial industry average of 16.6x, a peer average of 16.9x, and a fair ratio of 16.8x. The company also faces pressure if the proposed US$100m U.S. Vehicle Payments settlement reshapes fuel card pricing or if organic growth underperforms current analyst assumptions.
CPAY · Technology · Positive Corpay expanded its Corpay Complete platform with new AI agents automating expense analysis, virtual card issuance, and transaction coding.
CPAY · Capital · Positive Corpay raised its 2026 cash EPS guidance to $27.35 and plans buybacks with roughly $15b of available capital.
Berkshire Hathaway Raises Lennar Stake to About 11% With $53.9M Purchase
Berkshire Hathaway bought $53.9 million of Lennar shares in the last three days of September, lifting its stake in the U.S. homebuilder to roughly 11%, according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday. From Sept. 28 through Sept. 30, the conglomerate acquired 656,302 class A common shares and 4,108 class B common shares, bringing its total holdings to 26.0 million class A shares and 553,000 class B shares, a position valued at about $2.16 billion. That roughly 11% stake sits just under Vanguard's 11.2% holding, Bloomberg News reported. The buying follows Berkshire's $6.8 billion acquisition of Taylor Morrison Homes in July and adds to its ownership of Clayton Homes, a smaller investment in NVR and a sprawling real estate brokerage business. Berkshire, now run by CEO Greg Abel and overseen by Chairman Howard Buffett, is piling into real estate as climbing mortgage rates pressure the sector; Lennar shares have dropped 22% and the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF has dipped 12% year to date, lagging the S&P 500's 12% gain.
SBI Completes Full Acquisition of Bitbank; CEO Hirosue to Stay On
Bitbank, which operates a cryptocurrency exchange, announced on October 1 that the procedure to make it a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI Holdings has been completed. The two companies had announced the signing of an agreement toward the full acquisition on June 25, and the series of transactions was completed on October 1 when Bitbank acquired its own shares from existing shareholders MIXI and Ceres. The move will have no impact on Bitbank's services, and users will be able to continue using them as before. Accordingly, SBI VC Trade President Tomohiko Kondo has taken a position as a director of Bitbank. Meanwhile, Noriyuki Hirosue of Bitbank will continue to serve as representative director, president and CEO, and is also set to become an outside director of SBI VC Trade.
Berkshire Raises Lennar Stake to 10.9% Amid Housing Market Headwinds
Berkshire Hathaway has increased its stake in major U.S. homebuilder Lennar, raising its holding to 10.9%. According to filings submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Berkshire acquired about $212.4 million worth of shares over the three trading days from September 17 to 21, and about $136.4 million worth over the three trading days from September 23 to 25, bringing its holdings as of September 25 to 25.9 million shares valued at roughly $2.1 billion. That marks a 93% increase from the 13.4 million shares it held as of June 30, nearly doubling its stake in the second-largest homebuilder in the United States. The purchases began the day after Lennar announced its third-quarter 2026 results on September 16. In those results, revenue fell 8.6% year over year to $8.05 billion, while net income of $284 million was roughly half the $591 million reported a year earlier; new orders dropped about 9%, deliveries fell 3%, and the gross margin on home sales declined to 15.8% from 17.5%. Behind the weakness is rising U.S. mortgage rates, with the average 30-year fixed rate in the third week of September, as published by the Mortgage Bankers Association, at 7.12%, the highest level in about two years since May 2024.
Berkshire adds $300 million to Lennar stake, raising holding to 10.9%
Berkshire Hathaway has increased its stake in major U.S. homebuilder Lennar, raising its holding to 10.9%. According to filings submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company bought $212.4 million worth of shares over the three trading days from September 17 to 21, and $136.4 million worth over the three trading days from September 23 to 25, for a total investment of about $300 million. As of September 25, it held 25.9 million shares valued at about $2.1 billion, a 93% increase from 13.4 million shares as of June 30. The purchases began the day after Lennar announced its third-quarter 2026 earnings on September 16. In that report, revenue fell 8.6% year on year to $8.05 billion, while net income came in at $284 million, roughly half the $591 million of a year earlier, and the gross margin on home sales slipped from 17.5% to 15.8%. Behind this is the rise in U.S. mortgage rates: the average 30-year fixed rate in the third week of September, as published by the Mortgage Bankers Association, stood at 7.12%, the highest level in about two years since May 2024.
Berkshire Hathaway Names Howard G. Buffett Chairman as Warren Buffett Steps Down
Berkshire Hathaway announced that Warren Buffett has stepped down as Chairman, effective immediately, with the board naming Howard G. Buffett as the new Chairman while Warren Buffett assumes the title of Chairman Emeritus. The leadership change formalizes a new governance structure at Berkshire Hathaway that separates the Chair and Chief Executive roles, and comes alongside broader succession planning that investors have tracked for years. Howard G. Buffett has been on the board since 1993, giving investors continuity rather than a fresh outsider. Berkshire Hathaway runs a mix of insurance, freight rail transportation and utility operations, and carries a reported market value of about $1.1t. The handover puts the company's post-Buffett leadership team, including Greg Abel, under the spotlight as the group leans into utilities, insurance and housing exposure.
BRK-B · Regulation · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as Chairman with Howard G. Buffett named Chairman, formalizing a new governance structure and succession plan.
Berkshire Buys Taylor Morrison for $6.8 Billion, Merges It With Clayton Properties
Berkshire Hathaway acquired Taylor Morrison for about $6.8 billion in equity value in July 2026 and combined it with Clayton Properties Group, its existing portfolio of site-built homebuilders. The deal substantially expands Berkshire's presence in conventional homebuilding while complementing Clayton Homes' exposure to manufactured and more affordable housing, part of a broader push to build a scaled, vertically integrated U.S. housing platform rather than a collection of standalone investments. Berkshire also owns businesses spanning housing finance, building products and insurance, and its public-equity portfolio includes homebuilders such as Lennar, where it recently increased its stake. The U.S. housing market remains structurally undersupplied, with land constraints, labor shortages, elevated construction costs and financing challenges limiting new supply, conditions that may favor well-capitalized operators with scale and access to internal funding. Shares of BRK.B have lost 0.1% year to date, and the stock trades at a price-to-book value ratio of 1.44 against an industry average of 1.41.
Corpay Q2 2026 Revenue Rises 21% to $1.34 Billion on Core Growth
Corpay's second-quarter 2026 revenue rose 21% to $1.34 billion from $1.1 billion a year earlier, with core growth the largest single contributor to the increase. Core growth added $118 million to the quarter's revenue, ahead of the $78 million added by acquisitions and the $67 million contributed by macro factors, while divestiture activity reduced revenue by $27 million and partially offset those gains. The company said the improvement was broad-based across core growth, macro factors and acquisitions. Among U.S.-listed peers, WEX and Global Payments offer reference points for Corpay's payments exposure, with WEX framing specialized business payments and Global Payments providing context for broader transaction and commerce-related demand. Corpay, WEX and Global Payments each carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present.
Newtek Bank Expands App Connectivity to Sage, Xero, FreshBooks and Restaurant365
NewtekOne, Inc. announced that its bank subsidiary, Newtek Bank, N.A., has expanded connectivity between Newtek Bank accounts and the accounting and business applications independent business owners use to run their businesses. Newtek Bank now integrates with Sage, Xero, FreshBooks, Restaurant365 and other leading applications, building on its existing connectivity with QuickBooks and broadening the digital ecosystem available through Newtek Advantage. By connecting with QuickBooks, Sage, Xero and FreshBooks, Newtek Bank can integrate with accounting platforms representing approximately 85% of the U.S. small-business accounting software market, with additional supported applications including 1-800Accountant, Expensify, AppFolio and BILL. Newtek Advantage, the company's internally developed and patent-pending online business portal, serves as the central customer experience for Newtek Bank and NewtekOne's broader suite of business solutions. Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Barry Sloane said independent business owners increasingly expect their bank to work inside the digital systems they use, and that the expanded connectivity makes banking information more connected to customers' daily workflows.
NEWT · Technology · Positive Newtek Bank expanded its Newtek Advantage portal connectivity to Sage, Xero, FreshBooks, Restaurant365 and other accounting apps, broadening its digital ecosystem.
Equitable Holdings Exits FTSE All-World Index as Asset Management Head Seth Bernstein Retires
Equitable Holdings, Inc. was removed from the FTSE All-World Index (USD) on September 19, 2026, and announced on September 25, 2026 that Seth Bernstein will step down as Head of Asset Management following his retirement from AllianceBernstein entities. The index exclusion and the leadership change come as Equitable pursues its US$10.6 billion all-stock merger with Corebridge, a deal that underpins expectations for scale, cost savings and a broader retirement platform. The planned integration of AllianceBernstein into that model, including directing additional assets to AB, now sits against the backdrop of the asset-management leadership change. Equitable's narrative projects $18.3 billion in revenue and $2.2 billion in earnings by 2029, requiring 19.9% yearly revenue growth and a $3.2 billion earnings increase from -$982.0 million today, with a fair value estimate of $62.09 implying 15% upside. Community fair value estimates for Equitable range from about US$62 to over US$358,000 per share.
EQH · Capital · Neutral Equitable was removed from the FTSE All-World Index and its asset-management head is retiring as it pursues the Corebridge merger.
AB · Capital · Neutral Seth Bernstein retires as Head of Asset Management from AllianceBernstein entities amid Equitable's planned integration of AB into its post-Corebridge model.
CRBG · Capital · Neutral Corebridge is the counterparty in Equitable's US$10.6 billion all-stock merger, a deal underpinning scale and cost-savings expectations.
TOMS Capital Launches No-Confidence Proxy Push Against Voya Financial Board
TOMS Capital Investment Management has launched a no-confidence campaign against Voya Financial leadership and filed definitive proxy materials, urging shareholders to consider alternative strategic paths including potential M&A or restructuring options. The activist investor is seeking a shareholder vote that would formally register no confidence in Voya Financial's current board and senior management. The next concrete checkpoint is the November 24, 2026 shareholder meeting, where participation levels, the margin of support or opposition to the no-confidence proposal, and any board response on reviewing strategic alternatives will show whether this activism becomes a short-lived challenge or a longer-running overhang on the Voya Financial thesis. Voya Financial runs a workplace benefits and savings platform serving employers and their employees across the US and internationally, so the boardroom dispute sits against a business tied directly to how workers insure, protect, and invest their paychecks. The campaign goes straight at a specific risk in the Voya Financial Narrative, namely that an extended fight with TOMS Capital could distract leadership and cloud decisions on capital deployment or corporate actions, though it does not directly touch the core workplace and wealth-platform catalysts.
VOYA · Capital · Negative TOMS Capital launched a no-confidence proxy campaign against Voya's board, urging strategic alternatives and creating an overhang on the stock.
VOYA · Regulation · Negative TOMS Capital launched a no-confidence proxy campaign against Voya's board, seeking a vote and pushing for M&A or restructuring, creating an overhang on the company.
Charlie Munger Backs Greg Abel as Berkshire Hathaway's New CEO
Charlie Munger has publicly backed Greg Abel as Berkshire Hathaway's new chief executive, calling him a "tremendous learning machine" and comparing his abilities to those of Warren Buffett. Munger, the conglomerate's vice chair, highlighted Abel's long involvement with Berkshire's non-insurance operations as preparation for leading the group-wide portfolio. Berkshire Hathaway, a US diversified financial group with a roughly $1.1 trillion market cap, brings together insurance, freight rail and utility operations under one corporate umbrella, so the leadership call affects a wide mix of cash flows and capital allocation decisions. Munger's support signals that the board did not treat the handover as a formality, and that a senior insider viewed Abel's judgment and learning ability as comparable to Buffett's. The key marker ahead is Berkshire Hathaway's first full year set of results under Abel as CEO, covering the 2026 financial year, when investors can focus on the mix of retained cash versus buybacks and new investments.
BRK-B · Capital · Positive Munger publicly backs Greg Abel as Berkshire's new CEO, signaling board confidence in the leadership succession and capital allocation continuity.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Howard Buffett Takes Over
Warren Buffett stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. on September 18, 2026, becoming chairman emeritus effective immediately, with his son Howard Buffett taking over as non-executive chairman, according to Reuters. The move comes nearly nine months after Buffett, aged 96, stepped down as CEO in favor of longtime lieutenant Greg Abel, and Buffett will remain a director on the board. Berkshire enters the post-Buffett era from a position of financial strength, with second-quarter operating profit up 16% to $12.98 billion and $364.7 billion in cash and equivalents, while its shares compounded at 19.7% annually from 1965 through 2025 versus 10.5% for the S&P 500. Still, LSEG data cited by Reuters show Berkshire's price-to-book ratio declined from approximately 1.62 to 1.53 after Buffett first announced his CEO departure, and the stock had gained only around 1% in 2026 against approximately 12% for the S&P 500. Buffett will not retain a management position or routinely serve as Abel's sounding board, leaving Abel to prove he can deploy the $364.7 billion cash reserve and maintain discipline across Berkshire's businesses.
BRK-B · · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as chairman with Howard Buffett taking over, a leadership transition with no clear directional driver stated
Tributary Capital Sold Equitable Holdings Over Corebridge Merger Integration Risk
Tributary Capital Management's Multi Cap Core Equity Strategy disclosed that it sold its position in Equitable Holdings during the second quarter of 2026, citing the insurer's pending merger with Corebridge Financial. In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, the firm said the Corebridge deal adds meaningful integration risk and delays the return of excess capital to shareholders. Equitable Holdings, a diversified financial services company that writes annuities and insurance policies, administers group retirement plans and operates Alliance Bernstein, closed at $52.61 per share on September 24, 2026, with a market capitalization of $14.35 billion and a 52-week range of $35.20 to $55.06. The stock returned 4.80% over the past month but is up just 0.42% over the past year. The Tributary Multi Cap Core strategy returned 12.5% in the second quarter, trailing the S&P 1500's 15.3% and the Russell 3000's 15.4%, with Information Technology the main driver of its 2.8% relative underperformance.
EQH · Capital · Negative Tributary Capital sold its Equitable Holdings position, citing integration risk from the pending Corebridge merger and delayed return of excess capital to shareholders.
CRBG · Capital · Neutral Corebridge is the merger counterparty; the deal adds integration risk and delays capital returns, but the article reports no Corebridge-specific development.
Jim Cramer Praises Berkshire Hathaway Succession Plan as Buffett Steps Down
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, with his son Howard Buffett set to replace him, and Jim Cramer praised the succession plan on his morning appearance on the 18th, saying he could not find any company with such a definitive succession plan. The 2026 year is the first in which Berkshire Hathaway operates under new CEO Greg Abel, whose investment approach has differed from Buffett's, with more than $20 billion in stock purchases, of which $17 billion went into Google parent Alphabet alone. Berkshire Hathaway shares have been lackluster in 2026, up roughly 1% year-to-date and down 3% since mid-September. In the second quarter, the firm's revenue and operating earnings grew by 10% and 16.3%, its insurance float stood at $177.5 billion, and its cash pile was $365 billion. The company's forward P/E ratio is 22.88, well above insurance peer Progressive Corp., and 135 hedge funds disclosed a stake in the firm in Q2, up from 126 in Q1, with D E Shaw raising its stake by 311% to $961 million and Yacktman Asset Management by 269% to $581.
BRK-B · Capital · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard succeeding him and Greg Abel now CEO; Cramer praises the succession plan, while shares lag and Q2 revenue/operating earnings grew.
GOOG · Demand · Positive Berkshire under Greg Abel deployed over $20 billion in stock purchases, with $17 billion going into Alphabet alone.
JR Kyushu and SBI Officially Announce Financial Super App JQ BANK
Kyushu Railway Company and SBI Holdings officially announced on September 25 a basic agreement toward a business partnership, disclosing plans to jointly develop JQ BANK, a financial super app exclusively for JR Kyushu web members, with the aim of launching the service during fiscal 2027. The underlying financial platform will include banking, securities, and insurance, as well as crypto assets, foreign exchange margin trading, and stablecoin payments, with AI agents and media functions also part of the concept. It is said to be the first financial app in the railway industry to combine banking functions with securities and other services. In this official announcement, along with the app's name and target membership, specific offerings such as deposits, home loans, investment trust accumulation plans, and point-based investing were revealed. For the banking functions, the app will use a system that lets users access SBI Shinsei Bank's deposit and payment services within the JR Kyushu app, and it will offer free allowances for convenience store ATM withdrawal fees and transfer fees to other banks, while also considering the introduction of the yen deposit service SBI Hyper Deposit. To begin the service, JR Kyushu must obtain a banking agency license with SBI Shinsei Bank as its affiliated bank.
8473.JP · Demand · Positive SBI Holdings partners with JR Kyushu to launch JQ BANK super app, expanding its financial services to JR Kyushu's web members.
9142.JP · Demand · Positive JR Kyushu partners with SBI to launch JQ BANK, a financial super app for its web members, expanding its service offerings.
8303.JP · Demand · Positive SBI Shinsei Bank will provide deposit and payment services within the JQ BANK app, gaining access to JR Kyushu's member base.
Corpay Expands AI Agent Team Inside Corpay Complete
Corpay, Inc. announced it is expanding its team of purpose-built AI agents inside Corpay Complete, with each agent built to do one job well across corporate, fleet, and vendor payments. The expansion follows the April launch of the AI Virtual Assistant Agent, which gives users visibility into spend and answers their questions, and the July launch of Agent Card, which gave trusted AI agents a secure way to create and use virtual cards within existing payment controls. The new agents include the Embedded Insights Agent, which helps admins analyze spend and automatically flags anomalies with no report required; the AI Voice Assistant Agent, which creates and completes expenses by voice and answers questions about cards, transactions, and account status in plain language; and the Accounting Coding Agent, which automatically codes transactions for card administrators to the correct GL account, tax code, and cost center. Danny Martucci, President and GM of Commercial Card at Corpay, said the company did not set out to build one AI agent that claims to do everything well, adding that businesses want agents they can trust to do the work accurately and securely with no new system to learn. The expanding roster of AI agents is rolling out to eligible Corpay Complete customers this month, with more agents on the way.
CPAY · Technology · Positive Corpay is expanding its team of purpose-built AI agents inside Corpay Complete, rolling out new agents to eligible customers.
Berkshire Buys $212 Million of Lennar Shares After Weak Quarter
Berkshire Hathaway bought roughly $212.4 million worth of Lennar shares across three trading days in September, pushing its total position in the homebuilder to about $1.4 billion. The purchases took place between Sept. 17 and Sept. 21, with Berkshire picking up 2.74 million shares across both Class A and Class B stock, and LEN shares rose 2.1% on Monday and gained another 1.2% in overnight trading after the news broke. The buying followed Lennar's Sept. 16 third-quarter report, in which net earnings dropped to $284 million from $591 million a year earlier, revenue fell 8.6% to $8.05 billion, and adjusted earnings per share of $1.23 missed the $1.28 consensus, while new home orders declined 9% to 20,879 and gross margin fell to 15.8% from 17.5%. Management cut its full-year 2026 delivery outlook to 80,000 to 81,000 homes from 82,000 to 83,000 previously, prompting Barclays to cut its price target to $70 from $79 and Royal Bank of Canada to move its target to $69. The Lennar stake is part of a broader housing push under new CEO Greg Abel, following Berkshire's May agreement to acquire Taylor Morrison for $72.50 per share in cash, a deal that closed in July at about $6.8 billion in equity value and $8.5 billion in enterprise value, and adding to its existing positions in D.R. Horton and Clayton Homes.
Polaris Flags ORIX Bank Sale to Daiwa and Raised FY2027 Guidance
Polaris Capital Management's second-quarter 2026 investor letter for its Global Equity Strategy highlighted ORIX Corporation as a company-specific catalyst in financials, noting that under its new CEO ORIX sold Orix Bank to Daiwa Securities for approximately $2.3 billion, funding a buyback and raising its FY2027 profit guidance. The letter also cited gains from ORIX's OQCI Fund and a boost from its holding in Toshiba, which itself booked large gains selling down its stake in chipmaker Kioxia. The Polaris Global Equity Composite returned 13.26% net of fees for the quarter, trailing the MSCI World Index's 13.90% gross return, but remained ahead year-to-date through June 30, 2026, gaining 19.95% versus 9.94% for the benchmark on strong IT and AI-related holdings. ORIX closed at $39.53 per share on September 22, 2026, down 1.79% over the past month but up 46.86% over the past 52 weeks, with a market capitalization of $40.74 billion and a 52-week range of $24.19 to $42.39. Six hedge fund portfolios held ORIX at the end of the second quarter, down from nine in the previous quarter.
DigitalBridge and Aberdeen Complete ZEmobility and VGMobility Combination
DigitalBridge and Aberdeen Investments have completed the combination of ZEmobility and VGMobility, creating one of the largest sustainable transportation platforms globally, with over 5,400 buses deployed across Latin America. The transaction combines ZEmobility, an electric bus platform with 2,800 vehicles across Colombia and Chile jointly owned by DigitalBridge and Aberdeen Investments, and VGMobility, a similar platform with 2,600 vehicles across the same geographies. The combined platform comprises 16 concessions across Colombia and Chile and provides social infrastructure to transport authorities in Bogotá and Santiago under long-term, government-backed and availability-based lease contracts. The platform will continue operating under the ZEmobility brand while incorporating incremental VGMobility functions, solidifying its position as the leading public transport decarbonisation platform in Latin America with more than 5,400 vehicles. Sadiq Malik, Managing Director and Head of InfraBridge at DigitalBridge, said the combination brings together the two leading electric bus platforms in the region, while Ivan Wong, Partner for Concession Infrastructure at Aberdeen Investments, said the combined platform is helping accelerate the decarbonisation of public transport in Latin America.
ABDN.LSE · Capital · Positive Aberdeen Investments completed the combination of its ZEmobility and VGMobility electric bus platforms into a leading Latin America sustainable transport platform.
DBRG · Capital · Positive DigitalBridge completed the combination of its ZEmobility platform with VGMobility, creating a larger sustainable transport platform it co-owns.
VGMobility · Capital · Positive VGMobility's 2,600-vehicle platform was combined into the enlarged ZEmobility entity, consolidating its position.
ZEmobility · Capital · Positive ZEmobility absorbed VGMobility to become the leading public transport decarbonisation platform with over 5,400 buses.
Berkshire Hathaway Adds $212.38 Million to Lennar Stake, Shares Jump 6%
Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a $212.38 million purchase of Lennar shares, expanding its existing $1.2 billion position in the homebuilder and sending the stock up 6% in the afternoon session. The investment was revealed under mandatory Securities and Exchange Commission disclosure rules, which require any investor owning more than 10% of a company's stock to formally report purchases and changes to their holdings. Lennar shares are somewhat volatile and have had 10 moves greater than 5% over the last year, and the market treated this news as meaningful but not fundamentally perception-changing. The stock is down 20.1% since the start of the year and, at $83.30 per share, trades 37.4% below its 52-week high of $133.13 from December 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Lennar shares five years ago would now have only $849.49.
Berkshire Hathaway Buys Another $212.4 Million of Lennar Stock
Berkshire Hathaway disclosed another $212.4 million purchase of Lennar shares, deepening a housing-sector bet that now sits against a much tougher operating backdrop. According to an SEC Form 4, Berkshire bought more than 2.7 million Lennar Class A and Class B shares between September 17 and September 21 at weighted-average prices ranging from $74.80 to $79.41, through its insurance subsidiaries. Berkshire already owns more than 10% of Lennar, with an existing stake worth roughly $1.2 billion, and the move fits a broader housing push that includes its ownership of D.R. Horton and its completed $6.8 billion acquisition of Taylor Morrison in July. The buying comes as Lennar's fiscal third-quarter earnings fell to $1.19 per share from $2.29 a year earlier and missed the $1.28 consensus estimate, while revenue dropped 8.6% to $8.05 billion. New orders declined 9% to 20,879 homes, deliveries slipped 3% to 20,840, gross margin fell to 15.8% from 17.5%, and management cut its 2026 delivery outlook to 80,000-81,000 homes from 82,000-83,000.
Warren Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Hathaway Chairman, Son Howard Succeeds Him
Warren Buffett stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway last week, with his son Howard succeeding him in the role. Glenview Trust Company CIO Bill Stone called the move the completion of a succession plan Buffett set in motion at the 2025 annual meeting, noting that Buffett will no longer run the company day-to-day but will remain to protect the culture and values his father brought to the firm. Stone, who said Buffett is 71 years old, called him the greatest investor of all time. On Berkshire's stock, Stone attributed its recent lag behind the S&P 500 largely to expected pressure on operating earnings this year, primarily in the insurance business, which faces difficult comparisons after blowout prior-year results and more industry capital. He said he expects third-quarter operating earnings growth of only low to mid single digits, but sees more limited downside than many companies because Berkshire trades at such an attractive valuation.
BRK-B · Capital · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard succeeding, completing a succession plan; Stone notes operating earnings pressure in insurance but attractive valuation.
Berkshire Hathaway Operating Earnings Seen Topping $48 Billion in 2026
Berkshire Hathaway's operating earnings could easily top $48 billion this fiscal year, according to a Motley Fool analysis. The $1.1 trillion conglomerate's wholly owned businesses, including GEICO insurance, Fruit of the Loom, Clayton Homes and railroad BNSF, generated $12.98 billion in operating earnings in the quarter ending in June, bringing the year-to-date total to $24.33 billion. Berkshire simply needs to repeat its first-half 2026 performance in the second half to reach and eclipse the $48 billion mark, a likely outcome given that most of these wholly owned enterprises are reliable cash cows rather than high-growth businesses. The company also owns $360 billion worth of individual stocks, though it is not obligated to hold any of them. The article was originally published by The Motley Fool.
BRK-B · Capital · Positive Analysis projects Berkshire's operating earnings could top $48 billion in 2026, driven by reliable cash-cow wholly owned businesses.
BNSF Railway · Capital · Positive BNSF is named as one of Berkshire's wholly owned cash-cow businesses contributing to the projected operating earnings.
Fruit of the Loom · Capital · Positive Fruit of the Loom is named as one of Berkshire's wholly owned cash-cow businesses contributing to the projected operating earnings.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Names Son Howard Successor
Warren Buffett released a farewell letter announcing he is stepping down as Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway effective immediately, moving into the role of Chairman Emeritus. Buffett, who celebrated his 96th birthday recently, had held the Chairman role since 1970. His son Howard Buffett, who has served on Berkshire Hathaway's board for 33 years, has succeeded him as Chairman. In the letter, Buffett offered the four-word piece of investment advice that anchors his philosophy: "Father Time always wins." He added that Father Time "has, however, been generous with me. He has given me the opportunity to see Berkshire reach a point where I am more confident than ever about what lies ahead."
BRK-B · · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as Chairman effective immediately, with son Howard succeeding him; leadership transition with no stated financial or operational driver.
Buffett steps down as Berkshire chairman, Howard Buffett takes over
Warren Buffett, 96, has stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and moved to the role of honorary chairman, with his eldest son Howard Buffett becoming the new chairman. This means the legendary investor will no longer have a management role at the company he has run since 1965. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold talks in New York this week, covering issues ranging from tariffs to technology, amid the risk that China's upcoming restrictions on exports of critical minerals and rare earths will disrupt supply chains. Earlier, U.S. and Chinese officials led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng held talks in New York. The International Monetary Fund said governments around the world need to do more to reduce budget deficits and control public debt, which is at a record high, and forecast that global public debt will rise above 100% of gross domestic product by 2029, driven mainly by increases in U.S. and Chinese debt. On oil prices, the October West Texas Intermediate crude contract closed at 100.30 dollars a barrel, down 1.61 dollars, or 1.58%, and the November North Sea Brent crude contract closed at 104.87 dollars a barrel, down 95 cents, or 0.93%, after China acted on a Saudi request by asking Iran to help curb Houthi attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure.
BRK-B · · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as chairman and Howard Buffett becomes chairman, a leadership change with no stated operational or financial driver.
BRENT · Geopolitics · Negative Brent fell as China's request to Iran to curb Houthi attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure reduced the geopolitical supply threat.
WTI · Geopolitics · Negative WTI fell after China asked Iran to help curb Houthi attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure, easing Middle East supply-disruption risk.
Gemini stock plunges 80% from IPO price, industry watches for possible takeover target
Shares of the crypto exchange Gemini have fallen sharply by 80% compared with their initial public offering price, amid interest in cryptocurrency circles that it could become a takeover target. After the share price slid continuously since listing, analysts and industry players are watching whether the company founded by the Winklevoss family could become a target for mergers and acquisitions in the crypto sector, with names such as Ark Invest and platforms like Hyperliquid appearing in related discussions. This news was published on September 21, 2026, at 11:43 a.m., reported by Crypto Editorial.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman; Son Howard Named Successor
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway's board, the conglomerate said in a Sept. 18 press release, though he will remain a director and take the title of chairman emeritus. Howard Graham Buffett, one of Buffett's sons, has been appointed the new chairman of the board, effective immediately. Buffett, 96, had already handed the chief executive role to his hand-picked successor Greg Abel on Jan. 1, 2026, following the death of longtime partner Charlie Munger at age 99 in November 2023. In his Sept. 18 letter to shareholders, Buffett said his expectations for Abel were sky high from the start and that Abel has exceeded them, adding that Abel has been making the decisions that matter for some time. Under Abel, Berkshire has pole-vaulted Alphabet to a top-five holding, and as of June 30 its cash, cash equivalents, and Treasury bill position sat at $365.5 billion, more than its combined public stock holdings, which were worth $360.1 billion as of market close on Sept. 17.
BRK-B · · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard named successor, but he stays a director and Abel's CEO tenure is praised — no clear directional driver.
GOOG · Demand · Positive Under Abel, Berkshire pole-vaulted Alphabet to a top-five holding, signaling increased investor demand for the shares.
Berkshire Hathaway Names Howard Buffett Non-Executive Chairman as Warren Buffett Becomes Chairman Emeritus
Berkshire Hathaway announced that Warren Buffett has stepped down as chairman and become chairman emeritus, with his son Howard Buffett appointed non-executive chairman while Greg Abel continues as CEO and Susan Decker remains lead independent director. The move completes Berkshire's long-telegraphed succession plan, formally separating board oversight, day-to-day management, and founder influence in a three-person leadership structure. Greg Abel already controls the company's cash and Treasury pile and is pulling the main levers on buybacks and portfolio shifts, while Howard Buffett and Susan Decker formalize board oversight. The share price reaction was muted and results have been steady, so the change does not look material for near-term catalysts such as deployment of Berkshire's very large cash reserves or the performance of key holdings like Apple, American Express and Alphabet. The bigger shift is in risk perception, as the long-discussed key man question now becomes a live governance test rather than a theoretical one.
Warren Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Hathaway Chairman, Son Howard Named Successor
Warren Buffett has stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, becoming chairman emeritus after more than 50 years in the role, with his son Howard Buffett appointed chairman as part of the board's long signaled succession plan. Greg Abel remains chief executive officer, and the split of the chairman and CEO roles clarifies Berkshire Hathaway's future governance structure. The handover sits inside a broader shift in the company's leadership model, with Howard Buffett's elevation concentrating his role on culture, oversight and succession safeguards while Abel continues to run operations and capital allocation. Berkshire Hathaway is a US diversified financial group with a US$1.1b market value, combining large insurance operations with freight rail and utility businesses. The key waypoint to watch is Berkshire's first full year of disclosures after the handover, in the 2027 annual report, including how the board describes capital allocation responsibilities between Abel and Howard Buffett and any refinements to risk oversight.
BRK-B · Regulation · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard named successor under a long-signaled governance succession plan; Abel remains CEO, so the leadership change is neutral-to-mixed for the company.
Warren Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Son Howard Elected to Succeed Him
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said Friday that Warren Buffett has stepped down as chairman and will become chairman emeritus, effective immediately, with the board electing his son Howard Buffett, a Berkshire director since 1993, as chairman. Buffett, 95, will remain on Berkshire's board of directors and continue to provide his judgment and perspective to the company, while Greg Abel continues as CEO and Susan Decker remains lead independent director. Buffett said "Father Time always wins" but has been generous to him, adding that he is "more confident than ever" about Berkshire's future and that "Greg runs the company; Howard will guard its culture and values." Buffett transformed a struggling New England textile mill into a global financial and industrial powerhouse with $44.5 billion in 2025 operating earnings and nearly 400,000 employees, and he stepped down as Berkshire Hathaway CEO on December 31. Abel said Buffett remained actively involved this year, regularly visiting the Omaha office and attending the annual meeting in May, and in July Buffett told CNBC he was behind Berkshire's recent major investment in Alphabet Inc. and was recovering from a broken leg.
BRK-B · Regulation · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard elected chairman, while Greg Abel remains CEO — a leadership/governance change with no clear positive or negative operational driver.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Son Howard Takes Over
Warren Buffett announced on Friday that he is stepping down as Executive Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, effective immediately, with his son Howard Buffett stepping into the chairman role in a long-planned succession. Buffett, who had already passed the CEO torch to Greg Abel at the end of last year, is now chairman emeritus. The stock barely moved on the news, as Buffett's departure from day-to-day activities was largely priced in after his retirement from the CEO role was announced at Berkshire's May 2025 shareholder meeting. Abel has ended 14 consecutive quarters of net equity selling in the second quarter, spent more on buybacks than Berkshire has in five years, and made a substantial acquisition of a beaten-down homebuilder. Howard Buffett is not playing a day-to-day role in the company; his purpose in the chairman seat is to ensure whoever serves as CEO maintains the culture his father spent six decades building.
Buffett steps down as Berkshire Hathaway chairman, becomes chairman emeritus
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the $1 trillion conglomerate announced on Sep. 18. He will become chairman emeritus, effective immediately, while remaining a board director as his son Howard replaces him as chairman. The "Oracle of Omaha" led Berkshire Hathaway for nearly six decades until March 2025, when he announced his exit as CEO, and during his tenure he turned the company from a struggling textile business into a trillion-dollar conglomerate spanning insurance, energy, and technology. Buffett's long-standing skepticism of cryptocurrencies still resonates: in 2018 he called Bitcoin "probably rat poison squared" and said he would not even take a short position on Bitcoin futures, though Bitcoin was trading below $10,000 at the time and is now at $80,246, eight times higher. Berkshire Hathaway never directly invested in crypto, and it exited its entire stake in the crypto-friendly digital bank Nubank in the first quarter of 2025.
BRK-B · · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman to chairman emeritus, a leadership change with no clear positive or negative operational driver stated
BTC · · Neutral Mentioned only as context for Buffett's past skepticism and its price rise, no new crypto-specific catalyst
Berkshire Hathaway Names Howard Buffett Chairman as Warren Buffett Becomes Chairman Emeritus
Berkshire Hathaway completed its split succession Friday by naming Howard Buffett chairman and Warren Buffett chairman emeritus, with Class B shares falling $506.71 on the market's cautious reaction to a leadership structure that now spreads responsibilities once concentrated around Warren Buffett. Greg Abel keeps the operating wheel as CEO, while Howard Buffett takes a nonexecutive chairmanship focused on preserving Berkshire's culture and long-term operating philosophy. Warren Buffett remains a director and can still offer advice, but the formal transition is now unmistakable, with Berkshire's operating leadership, board stewardship and founder influence sitting in separate hands rather than under one legendary capital allocator. The handoff is happening from a position of strength, as second-quarter operating profit climbed 16% to $12.98 billion, shifting the investor question toward whether Berkshire can preserve its decentralized model, disciplined capital allocation and unusually candid shareholder culture across a new generation of leadership. At $506.71, Berkshire trades 8.35% below its GF Value estimate of $552.87, suggesting the shares are priced below GuruFocus' estimate of fair value as investors digest the succession transition.
BRK-B · Capital · Neutral Berkshire completed its succession with Howard Buffett as chairman and Warren Buffett as chairman emeritus, a leadership transition that sent Class B shares down $506.71.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Howard Buffett to Succeed
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, with his son Howard G. Buffett set to become chairman while Buffett becomes chairman emeritus and remains on the board. Buffett, 96, will hand the chairman role to Howard G. Buffett, who has served on the board for 33 years, while Susan Decker stays on as lead independent director. The move comes less than a year after Greg Abel became CEO, succeeding Buffett after roughly six decades in the role. Buffett endorsed Abel, saying his expectations for him were sky high from the start and that he has exceeded them, adding that Abel has been making the decisions that matter for some time. Buffett took control of Berkshire in 1965 and transformed a struggling textile company into a diversified conglomerate spanning insurance, railroads, energy, aerospace components, retail, real estate, truck stops and homebuilding, and Berkshire also manages an equity portfolio worth nearly $300 billion. Berkshire shares slipped about 0.1% in Friday premarket trading.
Warren Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Hathaway Chairman, Son Howard Named Successor
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the company he built over six decades, and will become chairman emeritus effective immediately, the company announced on Sept. 18. His son, Howard Buffett, 71, replaces him as chairman and will not have a management role, with his main responsibility being to preserve Berkshire's culture. Buffett, 96, handed the CEO reins to longtime lieutenant Greg Abel nine months ago and first announced plans to step away in May 2025. Over six decades, Buffett transformed Berkshire Hathaway from a failing textile company into a $1.1 trillion conglomerate, and between 1965, when he took over, and 2023, Berkshire stock reaped a compounded average annual return of 19.8%, compared with 10.2% for the S&P 500 as a whole. Berkshire stock is up just 0.7% this year as of late morning on Sept. 18, compared with an 11% gain for the S&P, and Buffett is the 10th-wealthiest American with an estimated wealth of $144 billion, according to Forbes.
Buffett Resigns as Berkshire Chairman, Abel Takes Over
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway effective immediately at age 96, becoming chairman emeritus while remaining on the board, with Greg Abel now running the company and Howard Buffett becoming chairman. Buffett took control of Berkshire in 1965 and compounded per-share market value at 19.7% annually from 1965 through 2025, versus 10.5% for the S&P 500 with dividends, producing a 6,099,294% cumulative gain against 46,061% for the index. Abel became chief executive in January and has already put Berkshire's cash to work, investing $10 billion in Alphabet's June private placement and accumulating roughly 106 million shares worth $37.8 billion by June 30, making Alphabet Berkshire's third-largest stock holding. Berkshire was a net buyer of stocks in the second quarter, investing $23.5 billion while selling $3.7 billion. Howard Buffett, a Berkshire director since 1993, becomes chairman as a guardian of the company's culture and values, while Abel retains responsibility for major capital-allocation decisions.
BRK-B · Capital · Neutral Buffett resigns as chairman effective immediately; Abel takes over running the company, a leadership transition with unclear net effect.
GOOG · Demand · Positive Berkshire invested $10 billion in Alphabet's June private placement and held ~106 million shares worth $37.8 billion by June 30, making it Berkshire's third-largest holding.
Buffett Steps Down as Berkshire Chairman, Son Howard to Succeed
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., ending roughly six decades at the helm of the conglomerate, with his son Howard set to replace him. Buffett, who is 96, will become chairman emeritus, while Greg Abel, long the company's operational leader, continues running the business day to day. Bloomberg Intelligence Senior P&C Insurance Analyst Matt Palazola said the market may be waiting for a change in capital management strategy, such as a dividend, though Abel has already said he is not a big fan of Berkshire paying one. According to Barron's, $10,000 invested in Berkshire Hathaway in 1965, when Buffett took over, would have been worth about 550 million by the end of 2024. Palazola called Buffett the greatest investor of all time but said many people contributed to Berkshire's success, noting recent moves including buying a group of Japan trading houses, selling some Apple shares and trimming Bank of America.
BRK-B · · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman with son Howard succeeding and Abel continuing to run operations; leadership transition with no clear directional driver.
Warren Buffett steps down as Berkshire Hathaway chairman
Warren Buffett stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate announced Friday, ending the revered investor's more than half a century of running the group he turned into a financial behemoth. The resignation is effective immediately, though Buffett will remain a member of the board of directors as chairman emeritus, Berkshire Hathaway said in a statement. Buffett's son Howard Buffett will take over as chairman, the statement added. The 96-year-old had announced plans last year to retire from leading the business group. Berkshire Hathaway, a former small textile company, has grown under Buffett's leadership into a gigantic conglomerate now worth over $1 trillion on Wall Street, a first for an American group outside the tech sector, owning dozens of businesses from Duracell batteries to US insurer Geico and shares in companies from Coca-Cola to Bank of America. In a letter to shareholders, Buffett said, "Father Time always wins. He has, however, been generous with me," adding that the company is in excellent hands.
BRK-B · · Neutral Buffett steps down as chairman effective immediately, with son Howard taking over; leadership change with no clear positive or negative driver.
Warren Buffett steps down as Berkshire Hathaway chair after 60 years
Warren Buffett is stepping down as chair of Berkshire Hathaway, the company he took from a faltering textile manufacturer into a $1tn conglomerate over the course of 60 years. Buffett's son, Howard, 71, will take over as chair, having served on the board since 1993 and long planned as his father's successor. Buffett, 96, cited his age as the main reason behind the transition, and said he will remain as chair emeritus and a director on the board. He left his post as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway in May 2025, when Greg Abel, vice-chair of the company, replaced him as CEO. Bloomberg places Buffett's net worth at $145bn, making him the 10th richest person in the world, and Abel said Buffett's impact on the company is without parallel in the history of American business.
BRK-B · · Neutral Warren Buffett steps down as chair after 60 years, with son Howard taking over; leadership transition with no clear financial or operational driver stated.
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