EXCLUSIVE: Will Warren Buffett Sell More Apple Stock After iPhone Sales Drop In China? 56% Say This

Legendary investor Warren Buffett has helped Berkshire Hathaway Inc BRK BRK outperform the S&P 500 on many occasions.

A large position in Apple Inc AAPL helped Berkshire in recent years, but Buffett has been selling the stock and could sell more in future quarters.

What Happened: Buffett's third-quarter holdings report revealed that the investor known as the Oracle of Omaha reduced his stake in Apple by 25%, selling 100 million of the 400 million shares owned.

With 300 million shares still owned, Apple remains a large weighting in the value of Berkshire Hathaway, and investors are keeping a close eye on whether Buffett will continue to trim his position.

Apple had many years of outperforming the stock market, but in recent months has struggled. The company lost market share and sales in China.

A recent report revealed Apple saw a 17% year-over-year sales decline in China for its iPhones, marking its largest single-year drop in the key country. This was the biggest annual drop for iPhones in China since 2016, leaving questions as to what Apple's future in the region looks like.

Apple fell behind the Chinese smartphone companies Vivo and Huawei in terms of market share in the country. Apple's 15% trailed the 17% and 16% of Vivo and Huawei, respectively.

The concerning iPhone sales are one of the reasons Apple stock has fallen 13.5% in the last month compared to a 1.4% gain for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY, which tracks the S&P 500. Over the last year, Apple’s 14.8% gain has also trailed the +25.6% gain for the SPY.

Benzinga recently polled readers to see what they think will happen next.

"Will Warren Buffett sell his Apple stock after the company lost $510 billion in market cap and saw declining iPhone sales in China?" Benzinga asked.

The results were:

• No, he'll hold on for the long term: 56%
• Yes, he'll start reducing his position soon: 44%

The poll saw a near even split between respondents, with a majority saying Buffett isn't going to sell more Apple stock in the near term.

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Why It's Important: With Apple's declining stock price, the company was recently passed by Nvidia for the title of the world's most valuable company. At the time of writing, Nvidia was valued at $3.566 trillion, and Apple ranked second at $3.355 trillion.

Apple is offering discounts on iPhone 16 models to try to win back customers after declining sales. The company also sees strong iPhone sales in other regions, which could make Chinese concerns overblown.

Buffett previously called Apple "probably the best business" he knew in the world, and it has remained a key investment for the Oracle of Omaha since he first took a stake of 9.8 million shares in 2016.

“I don’t think of Apple as a stock. I think of it as a third business,” Buffett once said in reference to Berkshire’s insurance and railroad interests being two large business segments.

While Buffett has bought more Apple shares since that initial purchase and also sold on several occasions, the stock continues to be his largest holding and a key to the valuation of Berkshire Hathaway.

Buffett's next 13F filing, expected in February, will reveal whether he further reduced his Apple holdings in the fourth quarter.

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The study was conducted by Benzinga from Jan. 22, 2025 through Jan. 23, 2025. It included the responses of a diverse population of adults 18 or older. Opting into the survey was completely voluntary, with no incentives offered to potential respondents. The study reflects results from 115 adults.

Image created using artificial intelligence via Midjourney.