Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett smiles and plays bridge after the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting on May 5, 2019 in Omaha, Nebraska .
Natty Harnik | Associated Press
Warren Buffett made five more annual gifts to foundations, bringing his charitable giving total to more than $50 billion, significantly higher than his entire net worth when he first arranged the giving in 2006.
The legendary 92-year-old investor said Thursday he has converted more than $9,000 Berkshire Class A Shares Enter B shares Donated 13.7 million B shares to five foundations. A total of 10.5 million shares were donated to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust and 1.05 million shares were donated to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named after his first wife, who founded the died.
Another 2.2 million shares are divided equally between the three foundations run by his children: the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and the NoVo Foundation. As of 1:30 p.m. ET, the Class B shares were worth about $336 each.
The “Oracle of Omaha” said the annual grant-making plan was instituted on June 26, 2006, when he owned $43 billion worth of Berkshire A shares, more than 98% of his net worth. Buffett pledged in a 2006 letter to donate Berkshire Class B shares to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation every year of his life.
“I neither bought nor bought any A or B shares for the next 17 years, nor do I intend to. These five foundations received Berkshire B shares, worth approximately $50 billion when received, a substantial More than all of my shares.” Net worth in 2006,” Buffett said. “I have no debt, and my remaining A shares are worth about $112 billion, well over 99% of my net worth. “
On Thanksgiving Eve last year, Buffett donated more than $750 million to four foundations related to his family as the “ultimate recognition” for his children.
Buffett plans to give away all of his Berkshire stock through an annual gift that will take place 10 years after his estate is settled. After donating this year, Buffett now owns 218,287 A shares and 344 B shares.
“Nothing in particular has happened to Berkshire; a long runway, simple and generally sound decisions, American tailwinds and compounding effects have produced my current fortune,” Buffett said. “My will states, More than 99% of my estate will go to charity.”
The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate is a sprawling empire with businesses in insurance, railroads, utilities, energy and retail, among others, and is now worth more than $730 billion.