Warren Buffett Explains Why He Couldn't Deny Greg Abel The Top Job At Berkshire Hathaway Any Longer: 'He's A Natural'

Warren Buffett says Berkshire Hathaway BRK BRK waited too long to hand the wheel to Greg Abel, calling his longtime lieutenant "a natural" and admitting it would have been "unfair" to deny him the top job any longer.

What Happened: Buffett, 94, told The Wall Street Journal that he will step down as chief executive in December, ending a six-decade run that turned his investing vehicle into a $900 billion conglomerate. Abel, 62, will move up from vice chairman, where he already supervises the company's non-insurance giants spanning railroads, utilities and manufacturing.

Buffett, 94, told The Wall Street Journal that he will step down as chief executive in December, ending a six-decade run that turned his investing vehicle into a $900 billion conglomerate. Abel, 62, will move up from vice chairman, where he already supervises the company's non-insurance giants spanning railroads, utilities and manufacturing.

"He's a natural," Buffett said.

See also: 5 Facts You Might Not Know About Warren Buffett’s Successor Greg Abel

Buffett conceded that aging finally caught him. "I didn't really start getting old … until I was about 90," he said, noting balance issues and fading eyesight. "The difference in energy level and just how much he (Greg Abel) could accomplish in a 10-hour day compared to what I could accomplish… the difference became more and more dramatic," Buffett said.

Buffett heaped more praise on Abel, saying he’s a lot like him in the way he doesn’t get fearful when “there's a panic in the market”. "He will have ideas about where money should be invested," Buffett said.

Why It Matters: At Berkshire's May 3 annual meeting, Buffett told shareholders "the time has arrived where Greg should become the chief executive of the company at year end," cementing the long-telegraphed hand-off to Abel. Meanwhile, in an interview, Berkshire Hathaway board lead director Sue Decker's has said that Abel is "much more involved in capital-allocation decisions," proof the transition is already happening behind the curtain.

Buffett has been equally blunt about rumors he's hoarding Berkshire's record $348 billion cash pile to give his heir an easy victory, joking, "I wouldn't do anything nearly so noble as to withhold investing myself just so Greg could look good." He added that he's still prepared to deploy "$20 billion, or even $100 billion" whenever opportunity knocks, pointing to the fact that the CEO switch won't clip his own investing wings.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings gives Berkshire Hathaway’s Class-A shares a momentum score of 82.06% and a strong growth score of 91.38%. Check to see how BRK’s Class-B shares compare.

Photo Courtesy: Rob Crandall on Shutterstock.com

Read next: YouTube’s Gemini AI Tool Knows When You’re Most Hooked — And That’s When The Ads Hit