MW Warren Buffett turns 95 this summer, and he's still working weekends

By Philip van Doorn

Also: What to expect from the stock market, the case for high-yield bonds and how your Social Security benefits might change if you go back to work

This weekend Berkshire Hathaway will hold its annual meeting in Omaha, Neb., and CEO Warren Buffett will be answering shareholders' questions bright and early on Saturday.

You can see the schedule of Berkshire events here, and if you haven't already done so, you should read Buffett's annual letter to shareholders. Anyone can learn from any of the legendary investor's letters.

Let's look at three charts that emphasize the power of Buffett's value-oriented approach to investing and to overseeing the company's core insurance businesses and other subsidiaries.

You might remember that several years ago, there were opinion pieces in the financial media saying that Buffett's investing style was outmoded.

Here are total returns for Berkshire Hathaway's Class B $(BRK.B)$ shares and the S&P 500 SPX, with dividends reinvested, for five years through 2021:

This chart shows performance from the end of 2021 through Thursday:

Now let us combine the two charts, for total returns from the end of 2016 through Thursday:

Tomi Kilgore analyzed the pattern of Berkshire's performance through different market conditions to make the case that Buffett is the greatest investor of all time.

Isabel Wang looked at how stocks of companies held within Berkshire's investment portfolio were performing and at historical trading patterns for Berkshire's own stock following its annual meetings.

And Bill Watts looked at the question of whether anyone will be able to replace Buffett.

What should you expect from the stock market in a world of policy and economic uncertainty?

The S&P 500 has bounced back from its lows in the aftermath of President Donald Trump's April 2 "liberation day" tariff announcements. Christine Idzelis interviewed money managers and investment strategists to get their opinions on what you should expect from the stock market going forward.

Related: Why are stocks climbing when a recession looks more likely? Here's one possible reason.

Is it time to change your investment portfolio to lower your risk?

The S&P 500's recent gains might make for a good moment to take a look at your investment allocation. Is your entire portfolio - or your retirement account - all in stocks? Is it in an S&P 500 index fund? That type of fund has the advantage of very low fees, but it is actually a rather concentrated investment. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY tracks the benchmark index by holding all of its stocks. The fund's top three holdings - Apple Inc. $(AAPL)$, Microsoft Corp. $(MSFT)$ and Nvidia Corp. $(NVDA)$ - make up 19.1% of the portfolio. Add Amazon.com Inc. $(AMZN)$ and Alphabet Inc. $(GOOGL)$ $(GOOG)$ and you are up to a combined 26.5% for the top five holdings. The top 10 holdings make up more than 36% of the portfolio.

Brett Arends dug further to explain why investors should avoid home-country bias.

More: Trump's tariffs are America's Brexit, says this strategist. These are the trades to make.

The case for high-yield bonds

Another way to diversify your portfolio is to focus some of it on income-generating investments.

High-yield bonds are also known as junk bonds. They provide more interest income than investment-grade bonds but have more risk of default and their market prices are more volatile.

But over the long term, high-yield bonds have performed much better on a total-return basis than investment-grade corporate bonds or U.S. Treasury securities.

Here's the case for high-yield bonds for long-term committed investors who want income, with a discussion of portfolio management and a specific credit example from John McClain of Brandywine Global.

You will need to lower your price

The U.S. housing shortage is old news. In an example of why one must never assume, Aarthi Swaminathan described what is becoming a buyer's market for homes in many parts of the country.

Read on: Home-price growth fizzles as economic uncertainty weighs on home buyers

If you are already receiving Social Security payments, what happens if you go back to work?

In the Help Me Retire column, Alessandra Malito answered questions from a man who retired and began to collect Social Security benefits, but then went back to work for five years. He wondered if his Social Security payments might increase. The answer is that they can increase under these circumstances.

Stress-test your retirement investing plan

This week in the Fix My Portfolio column, Beth Pinsker addressed the phenomenon of "loss aversion" and resulting behavior that can hurt your investment returns over the long term. She considered how this year's stock-market volatility might affect a retirement account and whether or not it is time to make changes.

Have you been donating to Starbucks?

Starbucks Corp. $(SBUX)$ reporting having $2.67 billion in cash and equivalents as of March 30. Steve Goldstein explained how customers - including you - may have given Starbucks $200 million in cash, in exchange for nothing.

The Moneyist gives advice from the heart

Decisions about estate planning can be very painful as parents consider the needs and behavior of their children. Quentin Fottrell - the Moneyist - helped a woman whose son had cut off all contact with her.

More from the Moneyist:

-- My sister has a learning disability and her husband squandered $100,000. How do I protect her after I'm gone?

-- My father is giving me $250K to buy a home, but told me not to tell my two siblings. Am I morally obligated to tell them?

What should you be streaming this month?

Mike Murphy sifted through the offerings and prices of eight streaming services to help you decide what to watch in May and how you might be able to save some money by cutting back on your subscriptions.

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-Philip van Doorn

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May 02, 2025 13:42 ET (17:42 GMT)

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