We recently published a list of 10 Best Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire Warren Buffett. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) stands against other best stocks to buy according to billionaire Warren Buffett.
Known and admired for his success, wealth and philanthropy, Warren Buffett is still at the helm of his diversified holding company. From a struggling New England textile company in the 1960s, Buffett has grown Berkshire to a firm boasting a range of businesses from Geico insurance to BNSF Railway, an equity portfolio exceeding $267 billion, and a cash reserve of $334.20 billion at the end of 2024.
Given his success on the investment horizon – a result of decades of strong returns – it doesn’t come as a surprise that Buffett is often touted as one of the greatest investors of all time. In an attempt to mirror his trading activity, many investors search for what stocks is Warren Buffett buying today.
The Oracle of Omaha focuses on companies with strong economic moats and undervalued assets, applying his well-known investment strategy – long-term value investing. Buffett is not that fond of diversification, as he is investing in businesses instead of stocks, picking those he understands.
While diversification as a risk mitigation technique is popular among those who are at the start of their investing journey, Buffett believes diversification could limit knowledge. He also doesn’t consider money the greatest investment tool, given his statement that “the best investment by far is anything that develops yourself, and it’s not taxed at all.”
Despite the strong market performance throughout much of 2024, Buffett appears to have taken a more cautious approach. With overinflated valuations due to high interest rates and deteriorating economic conditions in mind, he opted to sell off substantial stakes in companies whose valuations have become too high.
Buffett is also not fond of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports that sent shockwaves through global stock markets, even though his company’s Class B shares dipped 1.4% only on April 3, outperforming the broader market.
In the fourth quarter, Buffett’s 13F portfolio was comprised of a total of 38 security holdings and was worth roughly $267 billion, slightly up from $266 billion in the third quarter. Given that Buffett doesn’t like to diversify much, his top ten holdings account for nearly 90% of his 13F portfolio.
Our Methodology
To make the list of Warren Buffett’s top portfolio holdings we reviewed Berkshire’s fourth-quarter 2024 portfolio and ranked the list according to the hedge fund’s stake value in each firm. If there was an overlap, we prioritized the holding that was worth more money. We have also assessed the number of shares acquired by Berkshire Hathaway and hedge fund sentiment toward each stock from Insider Monkey’s database of hedge investor letters.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
That said, please see if there are overlaps between our compilation of the 10 longest-held stocks by The Oracle of Omaha wrapped up in November, and a new list of Warren Buffett’s top portfolio holdings.
Is Coca-Cola Company (KO) the Best Stock to Buy According to Billionaire Warren Buffett?
Coca Cola Co (NYSE:KO)
Portion of portfolio: 9.32%
Value of holdings: $24,904,000,000
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) is a famous beverage company that manufactures and sells a diverse range of nonalcoholic beverages, such as soft drinks, water, tea, juice, and plant-based alternatives, along with beverage concentrates and syrups for retail distribution.
Buffett held steady in his financial position with the company during the fourth quarter, holding 400,000,000 of its shares, and making it one of its top portfolio holdings.
Dubbed “amazing” by Jim Cramer during his appearance on Squawk on the Street in February, The Coca-Cola Company was able to shake off the effects of GLP-1 anti-craving drugs, having two-thirds of its portfolio being made up of low and no-calorie products, he recently said, according to Financial Times. Coca-Cola is expected to release the first quarter 2025 financial results on April 29 before the New York Stock Exchange opens. The fourth quarter earnings report revealed revenue of $11.47 billion, topping analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion for the period, as global demand for its drinks rose.
The Coca-Cola, which has been one of Buffett’s main holdings for over thirty years, generated $2.9 billion in operating cash flow and $1.6 billion in free cash flow during the quarter, demonstrating outstanding cash flow management. The company’s profitability was further proven by its strong adjusted operating margin of 30.7%.
The Coca-Cola Company’s shares were trading at $72.41 per share on April 24, at the time of writing, with the stock price impacted by the global geopolitical uncertainty and slowdowns in Mainland China and the company’s Asia travel retail sectors.
Overall, KO ranks 4th on our list of best stocks to buy according to billionaire Warren Buffett. While we acknowledge the potential of KO as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than KO but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
