Berkshire Hathaway Drops for 8th Straight Day, Fueling Buyback Bets

Berkshire Hathaway’s Class B shares fell for an eighth consecutive session in 2026, down about 6.8% for the year and lagging the broad market, even as the company sits on a sizable cash pile and owns defensive, non-cyclical businesses. The pullback could enable more aggressive investing and a ramp-up of stock buybacks (which resumed in March), with the stock trading near 1.4x book value and the potential for further repurchases under new leadership ahead of the May 2 quarterly results and shareholder meeting.