Berkshire Hathaway finds a use for 2% of its $397 billion cash pile with home-builder deal

By Steve Goldstein

Greg Abel, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, has struck his first deal.

Berkshire Hathaway has finally cracked open its wallet. A little.

The Omaha conglomerate's $6.8 billion all-cash deal to buy Taylor Morrison Home (TMHC), announced Sunday, accounts for less than 2% of the $397 billion cash pile it held as the first quarter ended.

In agreeing to buy the Scottsdale, Ariz. home builder, Berkshire Hathaway said it would pay a 24% premium to Friday's close in the first deal under new CEO Greg Abel.

Taylor Morrison shares rose 23% in early premarket trade, to $72.15, just below the offer price of $72.50.

Berkshire Hathaway's B-class shares (BRK.B) (BRK.A) slipped 0.2%. The stock has languished since Warren Buffett said he would step down as CEO in May 2025.

As is traditional with a Berkshire Hathaway acquisition, Taylor Morrison will continue to be run by its existing CEO, Sheryl Palmer.

It's the first purchase of any size by Berkshire Hathaway since the Oct. 2025 announcement that it would buy Occidental Chemical for nearly $10 billion, a deal that completed earlier this year.

Berkshire Hathaway, which already owns Clayton Homes, said that "over time" it plans to unify its "site-built homebuilding operations."

Berkshire Hathaway is buying at a time when 6% mortgage rates are depressing housing activity and shares in the sector. The State Street SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF XHB has been basically flat this year.

New-home sales in April fell 6.2%, according to Commerce Department data and on an annualized basis hasn't exceeded 800,000 since Jan. 2022.

-Steve Goldstein

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06-01-26 0444ET