---
title: "Berkshire Hathaway paid $10 billion for Alphabet at about $350 a share; Friday it closed at $283.93"
description: "Berkshire Hathaway's AI-era checks are splitting: the $10 billion June placement in Alphabet is under water, while the $930 million Bending Spoons stake rides on 9.625% junk. Saturday's third-quarter report and the November 16 filing show whether the cash pile keeps converting."
publisher: "The Inference"
section: "Economy"
published: 2026-11-07T04:58:08.763Z
modified: 2026-11-07T04:58:08.763Z
canonical: https://theinference.org/article/berkshire-hathaway-paid-10-billion-for-alphabet-at-about-350-a-share-friday-it-closed-at-283-93
language: en
keywords: "Berkshire Hathaway, Alphabet, Bending Spoons, Warren Buffett, 13F, Stock Moves"
---

# Berkshire Hathaway paid $10 billion for Alphabet at about $350 a share; Friday it closed at $283.93

> Berkshire Hathaway's AI-era checks are splitting: the $10 billion June placement in Alphabet is under water, while the $930 million Bending Spoons stake rides on 9.625% junk. Saturday's third-quarter report and the November 16 filing show whether the cash pile keeps converting.

## The $10 billion Alphabet check is under water

[Berkshire Hathaway](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/berkshire-hathaway) bought its [Alphabet](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/alphabet) stake straight from the source. In June, inside [the Google parent's $85 billion equity raise](https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/08/25/berkshire-hathaway-bought-10-billion-of-alphabet/), it paid $5 billion for Class A shares at $351.81 and $5 billion for Class C at $348.20, about $350 a share [1][2]. [Warren Buffett](https://theinference.org/markets/people/warren-e-buffett) initiated the position and has said the heavy second-quarter buying was his decision [1][2], in the first year of Greg Abel's tenure as chief executive [3].

Alphabet's two share classes have slid more than 24% since June and now trade below Berkshire's discounted purchase price [4]; Class C closed Friday at $283.93 [1]. [Barron's counts 106 million shares worth about $30 billion](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/berkshire-likely-has-a-loss-on-its-big-alphabet-stake-after-earnings-miss/ar-AA2gh05h), down from a $37 billion June peak, and puts Berkshire's average cost likely near $320 [2].

*Chart: **Berkshire paid about $350 for Alphabet in June; Friday's close was $283.93** Bars compare Alphabet's 52-week high of $404.47, Berkshire's blended June placement price of about $350, and the November 6, 2026 Class C close of $283.93*

*Alphabet share price in US dollars. Berkshire's June 2026 placement: $5 billion of Class A at $351.81 and $5 billion of Class C at $348.20, about $350 a share per Barron's; the close is Class C on November 6, 2026. Market data as of the November 6 close. Sources: [1] [2]. [1][2]*

## The $930 million check rides on 9.625% paper

The second AI-era bet is winning, on paper. [Bending Spoons](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/bending-spoons), the Milan acquirer that buys software businesses and rebuilds them with AI, listed on Nasdaq in July at $29 a share; Berkshire paid $600 million at the IPO and [$330 million more at $33](https://theinference.org/article/berkshire-put-another-330-million-into-bending-spoons-which-paid-1-8-billion-for-17-5-billion-miro), taking the stake to 4% [5][6]. The stock closed Friday at $42.41 [7], and Barron's still calls it Berkshire's bright spot among this year's broken listings [8].

## Behind the paper gains, roughly $3.4 billion of fresh secured debt

What the stake rests on, in date order. On October 14, [word that Berkshire would pay $33 for 10 million new shares](https://theinference.org/article/berkshire-hathaway-pays-33-a-share-for-330-million-of-new-bending-spoons-stock-shares-jump-41) sent the stock up 41% to $53.46 [5][6]. On October 28, Bending Spoons priced $1.25 billion of 2032 notes at 9.625%, issued by subsidiaries with no parent guarantee and serviced by the acquired apps' cash, taking new secured debt to roughly $3.4 billion in five weeks, as [tracked here](https://theinference.org/article/bending-spoons-closed-1-25-billion-of-junk-notes-at-9-625-and-airtable-s-cash-services-them) [9].

Berkshire closed the $330 million purchase the day after pricing [9]. Alphabet filled $10 billion of its $85 billion June raise with a single cornerstone buyer; Bending Spoons gained Berkshire-brand validation in the week its debt priced [2][9].

*Chart: **Bending Spoons still clears both Berkshire prices, but $11 off its Berkshire-day close** Bars compare Bending Spoons' July IPO price of $29, Berkshire's October 14 check at $33, the $53.46 close that day, and the $42.41 close on November 6, 2026*

*Bending Spoons share price in US dollars at four dates: the $29 Nasdaq IPO price (closed July 2, 2026), Berkshire's private-placement price of $33 (October 14), and closing prices on October 14 and November 6, 2026. Market data as of the November 6 close. Sources: [5] [6] [7]. [5][6][7]*

## Two filings decide whether the pivot continues

Shareholders have been paid meanwhile: Class B hit a record $579.09 on November 4 while [Nvidia](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/nvidia) and [Micron](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/micron) slid [3]. Second-quarter operating income was $12.98 billion [3]. The argument is live: Cathy Seifert of CFRA Research asks whether the buying is "a little late"; Meyer Shields of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reads the bets as a long-term wager [4]. Bloomberg's own comparison is Buffett's 2016 [Apple](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/apple) buy, derided then and lucrative since [4].

## The cash pile peaked in March and shrank as the buying resumed

The tell is the cash line. A record $380.2 billion in March [3] ended June at $365.5 billion [4], after Berkshire's first net-buying quarter in 14 quarters [3]. [The third-quarter report and its 10-Q post Saturday](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/berkshire-hathaway-inc-information-regarding-190000997.html) at about 7:00 a.m [11][10][7]. Central time [11]; [the 13F, the filing that discloses US-listed stock holdings](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/greg-abel-next-13f-lands-103109425.html), lands November 16 with September's Alphabet count [10]; Bending Spoons reports November 20 [7].

*Chart: **Cash and equivalents sit 60% below their mid-2025 peak as Berkshire's checks go out** Line chart of Berkshire Hathaway's cash and cash equivalents across 12 quarters, from $30.8 billion in Q3 2023 to a $100.5 billion peak in Q2 2025 and $40.6 billion in Q2 2026*

*Cash and cash equivalents on Berkshire Hathaway's balance sheet by calendar quarter, in USD billions, from its SEC filings, retrieved 7 November 2026. The filing measure counts cash and equivalents only; the cash-pile totals quoted in the story, a record $380.2 billion in March and $365.5 billion in June, also add short-term U.S. Treasury bill holdings. Q2 2026 was Berkshire's first net-buying quarter in 14. Sources: [12] [3] [4]. [12][3][4]*

A higher count means Berkshire bought the rout; a flat count means June was one quarter's enthusiasm, and by Barron's cost math the whole 106-million-share position sits under water, not just the placement [2].

## Takeaway

Berkshire's $10 billion Alphabet placement sits 19% under water at Friday's $283.93 close while Bending Spoons clears both check prices; Saturday's cash count and the November 16 13F decide whether the AI-era buying continues.

## Sources

1. [The Motley Fool, Jennifer Saibil, "Berkshire Hathaway Bought $10 Billion of Alphabet Straight From the Company, Bypassing the Open Market," 25 August 2026](https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/08/25/berkshire-hathaway-bought-10-billion-of-alphabet/)
2. [Barron's, Andrew Bary, via MSN, "Berkshire likely has a loss on its big Alphabet stake after earnings miss," 28 October 2026](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/berkshire-likely-has-a-loss-on-its-big-alphabet-stake-after-earnings-miss/ar-AA2gh05h)
3. [24/7 Wall St., Omor Ibne Ehsan, "Berkshire Has Gained 16% in About 5 Weeks," 5 November 2026](https://247wallst.com/investing/2026/11/05/berkshire-has-gained-16-in-about-5-weeks/)
4. [Bloomberg via Yahoo Finance, Alex Rajbhandari, "Berkshire's Pivot to AI Bets Gets an Immediate Reality Check," 6 November 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/berkshire-pivot-ai-bets-gets-142555106.html)
5. [Barchart via Yahoo Finance, Ebube Jones, "Berkshire Hathaway Raised Its Stake in Bending Spoons to 4%. That's a Big Vote of Confidence Retail Investors Should Follow.," 18 October 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/berkshire-hathaway-raised-stake-bending-202115193.html)
6. [CNBC via MSN, CJ Haddad, "Bending Spoons skyrockets 41% as Berkshire Hathaway makes $330 million investment," 14 October 2026](https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/bending-spoons-skyrockets-35-as-berkshire-hathaway-makes-330-million-investment/ar-AA2eeNsQ)
7. [Yahoo Finance, Bending Spoons S.p.A. (BSP) quote and statistics, market data as of the 6 November 2026 close](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/BSP/)
8. [Barron's, Andrew Bary, via Yahoo Finance, "IPOs Struggle in Tech Selloff. Berkshire Has a Winner.," 6 November 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/m/a6e64e40-fcac-36ae-90d3-af4f85a83748/ipos-struggle-in-tech.html)
9. [The Inference, Richard Tang, "Bending Spoons closed $1.25 billion of junk notes at 9.625%, and Airtable's cash services them," 6 November 2026](https://theinference.org/article/bending-spoons-closed-1-25-billion-of-junk-notes-at-9-625-and-airtable-s-cash-services-them)
10. [24/7 Wall St. via Yahoo Finance, Michael Williams, "Greg Abel's Next 13F Lands November 16, and 1 Question About Berkshire Hathaway's $299 Billion Portfolio Looms Larger Than Any Other," 5 November 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/greg-abel-next-13f-lands-103109425.html)
11. [Business Wire via Yahoo Finance, "Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Information Regarding Third Quarter Earnings Release," 4 November 2026](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/berkshire-hathaway-inc-information-regarding-190000997.html)
12. [Berkshire Hathaway, quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 7 November 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001067983)


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Berkshire Hathaway paid $10 billion for Alphabet at about $350 a share; Friday it closed at $283.93 — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/berkshire-hathaway-paid-10-billion-for-alphabet-at-about-350-a-share-friday-it-closed-at-283-93