Skip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to right columnADVERTISEMENTDaniel Sparks, The Motley FoolSat, July 18, 2026 at 6:39 AM GMT+2 5 min readSince Greg Abel took over as Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE: BRKA)(NYSE: BRKB) CEO at the start of the year, investors have been watching to see what he does with the conglomerate's war chest. Filings with Japanese regulators gave an early answer last quarter.Berkshire disclosed that its stake in trading house Mitsubishi (OTC: MSBHF) climbed to 11.1% as of April 30. Its stake in Sumitomo (OTC: SSUMY) reached 10.3% as of May 12, up from 9.3%. And Marubeni (OTC: MARUY) is on the list, too.Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again. In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue »Berkshire's buying has pushed its holdings in both Sumitomo and Marubeni above 10%, cementing the conglomerate's position as the largest shareholder of both companies.These are three of the five Japanese trading houses (Itochu and Mitsui are the other two) that Berkshire began buying in 2019 under Warren Buffett, who remains chairman. The original thesis has already paid off handsomely. So why does Berkshire keep adding? To me, the numbers make the case better than any story could.Image source: The Motley Fool.1. MitsubishiMitsubishi is Berkshire's largest Japanese position. The trading houses (Japan calls them sogo shosha) are conglomerates in their own right, each owning interests in a vast array of businesses in Japan and around the world.At the end of 2025, Berkshire owned 10.8% of Mitsubishi, a stake that cost $4.2 billion and was worth $9.2 billion, according to Berkshire's annual report. The position also paid Berkshire $273 million in dividends last year, the largest payout of the five. And the April filing shows the conglomerate kept buying anyway.2. MarubeniMarubeni has been Berkshire's best performer of the group. The stake cost about $1.6 billion and had grown to about $4.5 billion by the end of 2025 -- nearly a tripling. It added another $105 million in dividends last year.Berkshire owned 9.8% of Marubeni at year-end. The latest buying lifted that above 10%.Abel's newest dollars, in other words, went to Berkshire's biggest winner.3. SumitomoSumitomo rounds out the trio. Berkshire's position cost $1.9 billion and stood at $4.0 billion at the close of 2025, and it paid $102 million in dividends last year. The May filing put Berkshire's ownership at 10.3%, up a full percentage point.Impressive gainsAdd it all up, and Berkshire's five trading house stakes cost $15.4 billion and were worth $35.4 billion at the end of 2025. The five companies paid Berkshire a combined $862 million in dividends last year. That works out to a yield of about 5.6% on Berkshire's original cost.Terms and Privacy PolicyEU DSA contactPrivacy & Cookie SettingsMore Info