In the latest phase of Warren Buffett’s substantial Bank of America (BAC) stock divestment spree, the renowned investor and Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO has offloaded millions more BAC shares through his firm, with the most recent transaction nearing 22 million shares.
Buffett’s recent sale of BAC stocks totaled approximately $863 million and occurred between September 20 and September 24, bringing Berkshire Hathaway’s total BAC share sales to $9 billion as per TipRanks data on September 25.
The ‘Oracle of Omaha’ had previously sold 22.3 million BAC stocks a week ago, generating a profit of $896 million, and before that, around 5.8 million Bank of America stocks were sold for $228.65 million between September 6 and September 10.
Berkshire Hathaway, Bank of America’s largest shareholder, initiated its BAC stock selling streak in mid-July this year and has since liquidated a significant $9 billion across multiple trading sessions. The recent sale has reduced the company’s stake in Bank of America to 10.5%.
The rationale behind Buffett’s decision to sell BAC stock remains unknown. Haruki Toyama, portfolio manager at Madison Investments, does not view it as a bearish market stance, suggesting that Buffett has not made any explicit remarks on the current valuation of stocks.
Bank of America’s CEO, Brian Moynihan, praised Buffett as a great investor who stabilized the company and expressed uncertainty over the reasons for his reduced exposure.
At present, Bank of America’s stock price is at $39.13 per share, with a slight daily decline of 0.24% and weekly loss of 3.53%. The stock has decreased by 1.97% over the month and its year-to-date growth stands at 15.25%.
In what appears to be part of a longer-term trend of withdrawing from the U.S. banking sector, Buffett has previously exited his positions in several other major financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp, and Bank of New York Mellon.