• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
FinanceWarren Buffett

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway bought $1 billion of Activision shares, just weeks before Microsoft’s surprise acquisition

Sophie Mellor
By
Sophie Mellor
Sophie Mellor
Down Arrow Button Icon
Sophie Mellor
By
Sophie Mellor
Sophie Mellor
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 15, 2022, 8:02 AM ET

Just weeks before Microsoft announced it would acquire Activision Blizzard—the gaming company behind World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, and Candy Crush—in a surprise $68.7 billion acquisition, Berkshire Hathaway acquired a $1 billion stake in the video game company.

The wide-reaching conglomerate with a $703 billion stock portfolio purchased 14.7 million shares in Activision Blizzard in the fourth quarter of 2021, according to a regulatory filing released Monday. At the end of last year, those shares were valued at $975 million.

The stock bet has certainly been a good one for Buffett so far, as Activision share price jumped around 26% on the day of the deal’s announcement, on Jan. 18—and has overall ratcheted up more than 20% since the end of 2021, outpacing the broader market. Berkshire Hathaway’s newly added shares are now worth around $200 million more than they were at the end of 2021.

It is unknown if Warren Buffett or one of his two investment managers, Todd Combs or Ted Weschler, made the investment, but Buffett’s longstanding ties with Microsoft and its cofounder Bill Gates have raised eyebrows. Warren Buffett is one of Bill Gates’ favorite bridge partners, and the two billionaires once sat on each other’s boards. Gates served on the Berkshire board, while Buffett sat on that of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Buffett doesn’t own any shares in Microsoft and has said in the past that this was in order to quell fears that he was participating in any insider trading. If any news was announced after Berkshire Hathaway took a stake, he “would be the target of suggestions, or accusations even, that [Gates] had told me something or vice versa,” Buffett said, adding that he told his stock pickers to also avoid buying Microsoft shares.

Other than the well-timed $1 billion acquisition, little was changed in Berkshire’s sprawling stock portfolio, with minor adjustments in stock holdings and a continued sell-down in pharmaceutical companies including Teva, AbbVie, and Bristol Myers Squibb. Berkshire Hathaway has said it has struggled to find appealing investments in recent years, but it seems the Activision acquisition may have changed its mind.

Berkshire Hathaway has yet to respond to a request for comment.

The deal

Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision was by far the largest gaming deal ever and roughly equaled the amount Microsoft set aside for its five largest past acquisitions combined, including the $26 billion LinkedIn deal in 2016. 

In the aftermath of the news, Microsoft competitor Sony’s shares sank 12.8%—wiping $20 billion off its market value in one day—over fears that highly sought games owned by Activision wouldn’t be able to be played on Sony’s PlayStation console. Microsoft has since pledged that Activision’s Call of Duty franchise will continue to be available on PlayStation.

But the deal came with a caveat. Activision Blizzard has been mired in controversy over a series of allegations that its chief executive Bobby Kotick has created a toxic and sexist work environment. A Fortune investigation published days after the acquisition detailed years of harassment when women say they were routinely belittled and discriminated against. 

Buffett acquired his Activision Blizzard shares during a price dip that followed the news of the July 2021 lawsuit brought against the company by California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) alleging the gender discrimination, harassment, and retaliation—a suit that was two years in the making. 

Buffett is expected to provide an update on Berkshire’s investments in his closely watched shareholder letter and annual report, due in late February.

Never miss a story: Follow your favorite topics and authors to get a personalized email with the journalism that matters most to you.
About the Author
Sophie Mellor
By Sophie Mellor
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Clinical Psychologist Daniel Wendler
ConferencesWorkplace Innovation Summit
A ‘proudly autistic’ workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
By Tristan BoveMay 20, 2026
27 minutes ago
Hiba Mona Anver, wearing a black and white striped dress, gestures with her hands as she speaks onstage.
North AmericaWorkplace Innovation Summit
80% of companies have an immigrant in a top leadership role—Trump’s visa crackdown is forcing them to make a ‘plan C,’ warns immigration expert
By Sasha RogelbergMay 20, 2026
1 hour ago
harvard
EconomyHarvard University
Harvard admits it was too easy to get A grades, vows crackdown
By Leah Willingham and The Associated PressMay 20, 2026
1 hour ago
Jensen Huang, chief executive officer of Nvidia Corp
InvestingNvidia
The one number that will actually move Nvidia’s stock Wednesday night
By Eva RoytburgMay 20, 2026
2 hours ago
bezos
Personal FinanceNew York City
Jeff Bezos on Zohran Mamdani’s big mistake: ‘When you don’t know how to solve a problem, create a villain, blame them’
By Nick LichtenbergMay 20, 2026
2 hours ago
electrical transmission lines hang over a housing development on March 24, 2026 in Sylmar, California.
EnergyElectricity
2025 was a turning point for your electricity bill and it’s just getting more expensive from here. It’s not just data centers
By Tristan BoveMay 20, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
23 hours ago
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
Future of Work
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
By Mike Householder and The Associated PressMay 17, 2026
3 days ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
8 days ago
Current price of oil as of May 19, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 19, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 19, 2026
1 day ago
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
Travel & Leisure
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
By Rio Yamat and The Associated PressMay 18, 2026
2 days ago
CNN analyst and 'The Morning Show' producer says Stephen Colbert is a role model for his ‘positive’ outlook on his show ending
Arts & Entertainment
CNN analyst and 'The Morning Show' producer says Stephen Colbert is a role model for his ‘positive’ outlook on his show ending
By Emma BurleighMay 19, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.