Zinger Key Points
- Berkshire Hathaway, led by Warren Buffett, outperformed the leading S&P 500 ETF in 2024.
- A look at the returns of the two investments over the last 20 years.
Legendary investor Warren Buffett had a 2024 to remember with Berkshire Hathaway Inc BRKBRK reaching the $1 trillion market capitalization milestone for the first time.
During the year, Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway also outperformed the S&P 500, as tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY.
Overall, Berkshire Hathaway stock was up 27.1% in 2024 versus a 24.1% gain for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, according to data from Macrotrends. That’s despite Berkshire Hathaway offloading top-performing Apple Inc AAPL stock during the year.
Here's a look at the gains of Berkshire Hathaway B shares vs. the SPY over the last 20 years:
| YEAR | BRK-B | SPY | WINNER |
| 2024 | +27.1% | +24.1% | Buffett |
| 2023 | +15.5% | +26.7% | SPY |
| 2022 | +3.3% | -17.5% | Buffett |
| 2021 | +29.0% | +28.7% | Buffett |
| 2020 | +2.4% | +18.4% | SPY |
| 2019 | +10.9% | +31.2% | SPY |
| 2018 | +3.0% | -4.6% | Buffett |
| 2017 | +21.6% | +21.7% | SPY |
| 2016 | +23.4% | +12.0% | Buffett |
| 2015 | -12.1% | +1.3% | SPY |
| 2014 | +26.6% | +13.5% | Buffett |
| 2013 | +32.2% | +32.3% | SPY |
| 2012 | +17.6% | +16.0% | Buffett |
| 2011 | -4.8% | +1.9% | SPY |
| 2010 | +21.9% | +15.1% | Buffett |
| 2009 | +2.2% | +26.4% | SPY |
| 2008 | -32.1% | -36.8% | Buffett |
| 2007 | +29.2% | +5.1% | Buffett |
| 2006 | +24.9% | +15.9% | Buffett |
| 2005 | -.02% | +4.8% | SPY |
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Key Points: Buffett Vs. SPY
Berkshire Hathaway beat the S&P 500 in 2024, but significantly underperformed in 2023.
The last down year for the S&P 500 came in 2022 with the SPY down 17.5% for the year. For Berkshire Hathaway, the last down year was in 2015, with a 12.1% decline.
Over the last 20 years, the best return for the SPY was +32.3% in 2013, just outperforming Berkshire Hathaway at +32.2% in the same year.
A look at the worst year also sees SPY win with a 36.8% decline in 2008 compared to a 32.1% decline for Berkshire Hathaway in the same year.
Overall, in the last 20 years, Buffett has won the head-to-head battle 11 times with SPY winning nine times.
Taking the average return of the last 20 years, Berkshire Hathaway leads at 12.1% to 11.5%.
More importantly, the 20-year return is +669% for Berkshire Hathaway compared to a 20-year return of +621.2% for SPY, adjusted for dividends.
When it comes to investing in the SPY vs. Berkshire Hathaway, the Oracle of Omaha leads the battle across many metrics over the last 20 years, including overall returns.
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