Warren Buffett
Born 1930 · Age 96
American investor and philanthropist; chairman and CEO (longtime) of Berkshire Hathaway; famous value investor and philanthropist who founded the Giving Pledge with Bill Gates.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Omaha, Nebraska
Warren Edward Buffett born to Howard and Leila Buffett in Omaha.
First small businesses - gum and soda sales
As a child during the Depression Buffett sold gum and Coca-Cola, early entrepreneurial activity.
Bought first stocks (Cities Service)
At age 11 bought three shares of Cities Service Preferred for himself and three for his sister.
Filed first tax return
Filed first income tax return, deducting $35 for bicycle/watch used on paper route.
Started pinball-machine business
With a friend bought a used pinball machine for $25 and placed it in a barber shop as an early entrepreneurial venture.
Sold pinball business
Sold Wilson Coin Operated Machines (pinball business) for $1,200.
Matriculated at Wharton School, Univ. of Pennsylvania
Enrolled at Wharton; joined Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity; later transferred to University of Nebraska.
Graduated University of Nebraska (BS)
Completed Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (major in Investment Management).
Earned MS in Economics from Columbia Business School
Studied under Benjamin Graham and adopted principles of value investing.
Attended New York Institute of Finance
Completed coursework at NY Institute of Finance to deepen economics/finance background.
Started work at Buffett-Falk & Co.
Worked as an investment salesman at his father's brokerage firm (1951–1954).
Married Susan Thompson Buffett
Married Susan (Susie) Thompson; the couple later had three children (Susan Alice, Howard, Peter).
Joined Benjamin Graham's partnership (Graham-Newman)
Accepted a job at Graham-Newman as a securities analyst; starting salary reported at $12,000/year.
Benjamin Graham retired; Buffett returned to Omaha
Graham closed his partnership; Buffett returned to Omaha to start his own investment partnerships.
Founded Buffett Partnership Ltd (Buffett Associates)
Merged client capital and started his own investment partnerships; early partner capital and his own savings were deployed.
Operated multiple partnerships from Omaha
Expanded to several investment partnerships (three in 1957, six by 1959).
Purchased Omaha home (longtime residence)
Bought a five-bedroom stucco house in Omaha for $31,500 in 1958 where he continues to live.
Met Charlie Munger
Introduced to Charlie Munger at The Omaha Club; began a lifelong friendship and eventual partnership.
Sanborn Map investment (activist position)
Purchased ~23% of Sanborn Map Company, obtained board seat, and realized large gain as company repurchased shares.
Merged partnerships into Buffett Partnership, Ltd.; became a millionaire
Partnerships combined; partnerships held nearly $7.2M with Buffett personally holding over $1,025,000.
Began buying Berkshire Hathaway shares
Partnerships began purchasing shares in Berkshire Hathaway (textile manufacturer) at low prices as an investment opportunity.
Took control of Berkshire Hathaway
Buffett's partnerships became largest shareholder, he took effective control and named Ken Chace president; textile operations remained.
Closed partnership to new money
Buffett stopped admitting new partners to Buffett Partnership, citing difficulty finding investments that improved results for added capital.
Berkshire paid its only dividend (10 cents)
Berkshire Hathaway paid a 10-cent dividend—the first and only dividend in its history.
Liquidated Buffett Partnerships and distributed assets
Buffett closed and liquidated the partnerships and transferred assets (including Berkshire shares) to partners; he lived on a $50,000 salary thereafter.
Emerged as chairman and majority shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway
Became chairman and largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway and began using it as his primary investment vehicle.
Bought Laguna Beach vacation home
Purchased a vacation home in Laguna Beach, California for $150,000 (later sold in 2018).
Acquired stake in The Washington Post; joined its board
Began buying stock in The Washington Post Company and became a close friend and board member with Katharine Graham.
Major GEICO investment
Purchased approximately 1 million shares of GEICO at about $2 per share (an important long-term investment for Berkshire).
Purchased Buffalo Evening News
Indirectly purchased the Buffalo Evening News for $32.5 million; later renamed The Buffalo News.
Charlie Munger joined Berkshire as Vice-Chairman
Longtime associate Charlie Munger formally joined Berkshire Hathaway as vice-chairman and guiding partner.
Buffett's net worth ~ $100M; Berkshire trading at ~$290/share
By 1979 Berkshire was trading at about $290/share and Buffett's personal net worth estimated around $100M.
Acquired Nebraska Furniture Mart
Berkshire purchased Nebraska Furniture Mart for about $60 million; Buffett's net worth entered Forbes list, estimated ~$620M.
Helped finance Capital Cities/ABC deal
Buffett helped finance the Capital Cities acquisition of ABC; Berkshire received a 25% stake in combined company as part of the deal.
Berkshire began buying Coca-Cola (7% stake)
Purchased roughly 7% stake in The Coca-Cola Company for about $1.02 billion; became one of Berkshire's most profitable holdings.
Net worth reached ~$3.8 billion
By 1989 Buffett's estimated personal net worth was about $3.8 billion as Berkshire grew and made acquisitions.
Acquired Dexter Shoe (later considered mistake)
Purchased Dexter Shoe for $433 million in Berkshire stock; later considered one of Buffett's worst deals.
Issued Class B shares; completed acquisition of GEICO
Berkshire issued lower-priced Class B shares and completed acquisition of the remaining GEICO stake.
Acquired General Re and Executive Jet (NetJets)
Purchased General Re and Executive Jet, expanding Berkshire's insurance and aviation-related businesses.
Named Top Money Manager of the 20th Century (Carson Group)
Survey named Buffett the Top Money Manager of the Twentieth Century ahead of other famous investors.
Named Top Money Manager of the Twentieth Century (Carson Group)
Recognized in a Carson Group survey as top money manager of the 20th century (included in historical retrospectives).
Entered $11 billion forward currency contracts
Structured forward contracts to deliver U.S. dollars against other currencies valued at $11 billion.
Announced plan to give away most of fortune
Announced gradual gifts of Berkshire stock beginning July 2006, with a large contribution to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; plan represented giving away the majority (announced figures varied: 80%–85%).
Public pledge to donate majority of his wealth (initial plan)
Publicly announced he would give away more than 80% (often reported as 85%) of his Berkshire holdings to foundations, largest share to Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Purchased Omaha home (historic note)
Buffett had purchased a five-bedroom Omaha house in 1958 for $31,500; he continued to live there for decades (notable low-cost residence).
Married Astrid Menks
Married longtime companion Astrid Menks on his 76th birthday (she had lived with him since the 1970s).
Sought younger successor to run investment business
In his 2007 letter to shareholders Buffett said he was looking for a younger successor or successors to manage Berkshire's investments.
Provided financing for Dow Chemical's Rohm & Haas takeover
Berkshire provided $3 billion to help Dow Chemical's acquisition; Buffett played an instrumental role in crisis-era deals.
Became richest person in world (briefly)
Forbes estimated Buffett's net worth at about $62 billion in 2008, making him the richest person at that time.
Invested in Goldman Sachs (preferred stock)
Berkshire acquired preferred perpetual stock in Goldman Sachs (widely reported $5 billion investment) during the financial crisis.
Invested in Swiss Re recapitalization
Participated with a $2.6 billion investment in Swiss Re's equity capital raise.
Announced acquisition of Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) (initial)
Berkshire announced it would acquire BNSF; initial reported value ~ $34 billion (closed later at higher enterprise value).
Merger with BNSF closed (~$44 billion enterprise value)
BNSF acquisition closed in Q1 2010; deal widely reported as ~$44 billion including debt.
Co‑founded The Giving Pledge with Bill Gates
Founded the Giving Pledge to encourage billionaires to commit the majority of their wealth to philanthropy.
Goldman Sachs repurchased Berkshire preferred (Fed approval)
Goldman Sachs bought back Berkshire's preferred stock after Federal Reserve approval; Buffett had received significant dividend income from the investment.
Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in recognition of contributions to business and philanthropy.
Acquired large IBM stake (~$11 billion)
Berkshire purchased ~64 million shares of IBM over several months; public disclosure in November 2011 put the investment at about $11 billion.
Acquired Omaha World-Herald
Berkshire acquired the Omaha World-Herald newspaper, among other media purchases around this time.
Diagnosed with stage I prostate cancer
Announced diagnosis and planned 44-day radiation treatment beginning mid-July 2012.
Purchased 50% stake in H.J. Heinz Company (~$28B deal)
Berkshire joined 3G Capital to acquire H.J. Heinz Company in a transaction valued at about $28 billion for the company.
Quarterly record profit (Q2 2014: $6.4B)
Berkshire reported its largest-ever quarterly net profit (to that date) of $6.4 billion in Q2 2014.
Berkshire Hathaway shares hit $200,000 each
Berkshire Class A shares reached $200,000 each for the first time; Buffett still held 321,000 shares valued at about $64.2 billion.
Public image and shareholder meeting 'Woodstock of Capitalism' milestone
Presided over annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting which attracts over 20,000 visitors annually and extensive media coverage.
Acquired Precision Castparts (~$37B)
Berkshire completed purchase of Precision Castparts in a deal valued at approximately $37 billion—the company's largest acquisition by dollar amount to that date.
Berkshire began buying Apple shares (major position)
Buffett changed his stance on technology and began accumulating a large position in Apple, eventually one of Berkshire's largest holdings.
Agreed to have likeness on Cherry Coke (China) — no compensation
Agreed in April 2017 to have his likeness placed on Cherry Coke products in China; Buffett was not compensated.
Sold Laguna Beach vacation home
Sold Laguna Beach vacation home (originally purchased in 1971 for $150,000) for approximately $7.5 million in 2018.
Raised philanthropic commitment to 99%
Public reporting (Britannica) notes Buffett increased his planned giving to donate 99% of his fortune by the time of his death.
Reported net worth around $104 billion (CNBC report)
CNBC and other outlets reported Buffett's net worth near $104 billion in 2021; Berkshire continued to hold large equity positions.
Forbes estimates net worth at $160.2 billion (May 2025)
Forbes reported Buffett's net worth at US$160.2 billion, ranking him among the world's wealthiest individuals.
Requested Greg Abel be named CEO successor
At Berkshire Hathaway's investor conference Buffett asked the board to appoint Greg Abel to succeed him as CEO by year's end while he remained chairman.
Board announced Greg Abel named president & CEO effective Jan 1, 2026
Berkshire announced Greg Abel would become president and CEO effective January 1, 2026; Buffett to remain chairman.
Key Achievement Ages
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