What's going on?

Late last week, Warren Buffett � the world�s third-richest person � disclosed that he pared back his orchard and reduced his company�s shareholding in Apple last year.

What does this mean?

Buffett�s investment firm, Berkshire Hathaway, pruned its stake in the tech behemoth by 1% in the final quarter of 2018, ahead of Apple�s warning of slowing iPhone sales (tweet this). And Berkshire also dumped $2 billion worth of software firm Oracle�s shares just three months after picking them up.


But Buffett is no technophobe: Berkshire bought over four million shares in software company Red Hat (though it�s unknown if that was before or after IBM splashed $34 billion on buying the company). Berkshire also continued to bet on insurance companies: more on how they�re faring next story…

Why should I care?

For markets: Shares buffeted by Buffett.

Berkshire Hathaway is a global bellwether for investors: where Buffett boldly goes, others often follow. Red Hat�s shares edged up on Friday, likely bolstered by Berkshire�s vote of confidence � and Apple�s shares fell slightly. Buffett�s opinion carries some serious weight among investors, and Berkshire�s latest update suggests worries about the futures of the companies it sold. Heed-taking investors jumped on the doubt train with him � and stayed on it as far as Apple is concerned: according to recent data from TipRanks, investor sentiment is now �very negative� on the US�s first trillion-dollar company.

The bigger picture: Buffett’s backing crypto (sort of).

Buffett also bet big on US banks, boosting Berkshire�s stake in JPMorgan Chase � right before JPMorgan announced its own cryptocurrency. The so-called �JPM Coin� is the first of its kind for a US bank and a bold move after JPMorgan�s CEO previously ridiculed bitcoin as a �fraud�. Whether Buffett knew it or not, Berkshire Hathaway is now tied up in a bet on what some see as the future of banking: blockchain (the technology that powers crypto).