Warren Buffett’s $1.3 billion gift — Which four foundations received Berkshire Hathaway stocks

The billionaire value investor and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Omaha-based investment giant Berkshire Hathaway announced in his latest letter to shareholders that he is leaving four family foundations with a billion-dollar parting gift.

Oracle of Omaha Warren Buffett announced in his letter that the experienced investor will stop writing annual reports and speaking at company meetings as he now considers his retirement by the end of 2025.

$1.3 billion farewell gift from Warren Buffett

In his letter to shareholders, Warren Buffett announced that the billionaire value investor converted 1,800 Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares into 27 lakh Berkshire Hathaway Class B shares and allocated it to four family trusts.

“Today, Warren E. Buffett converted 1,800 A shares into 2,700,000 B shares to issue these B shares to four family trusts,” according to the letter published on November 10, 2025.

Based on the November 10, 2025 closing price of these shares, the estimated value of the total shares allocated to family foundations is over $1.3 billion. Donations in the form of shares were transferred to the foundations on Monday, November 10, 2025.

Buffett allocated 1,500,000 shares of Class B stock to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation and 400,000 shares of Class B stock to the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation.

Where did Buffett donate shares?

The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, the Sherwood Foundation, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, and the NoVo Foundation were the four family foundations to which Warren Buffett decided to donate shares of investment giant Berkshire Hathaway.

Let’s take a look at what these four foundations do —

1. Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation: The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation is a family foundation that has provided scholarships to college students in Nebraska for more than fifty years.

According to the official website, the scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis to ‘freshman’ entering college for the first time and living in Nebraska.

To be eligible for the scholarship, the student must graduate from a Nebraska high school (or GED) and plan to attend a Nebraska public university. In order to benefit from the grant, the family must also have financial need.

2. Sherwood Foundation: The Sherwood Foundation is a Buffett family foundation that provides grants to Nebraska’s infrastructure to make the state a better place to live and work.

3. Howard G. Buffett Foundation: Founded in 1999, the Howard G. Buffett Foundation aims to improve the standard of living and quality of life of the world’s poorest and most marginalized populations.

The foundation invests in three main areas: food security, conflict mitigation and combating human trafficking in many countries around the world. In addition to its contribution to human life, the foundation also makes smaller investments for the protection of wildlife such as cheetahs and mountain gorillas.

4.NoVo Foundation: According to its official website, the NoVo Foundation is a program that directs its attention to the empowerment of women and girls, while also supporting men and boys in transforming their roles towards a more balanced society.

The Foundation implements strategies such as education and economic empowerment for young women and girls in developed countries and carries out efforts to end violence against women and girls.