What if you had copied Berkshire Hathaway?
Warren Buffett
The verdict
Copying Berkshire Hathaway's 13F filings from Feb 2020 would have turned $10,000 into $23,688, less than the S&P 500 did.
The S&P 500 turned the same $10,000 into $24,639 over the same days. The copy returned +13.7% a year against +14.4% for the S&P 500, 0.7 points a year behind. Its worst fall was 39.2%, from Feb 19, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020. The S&P 500's worst fall over the test was 33.7%.
Copied Feb 18, 2020 to Nov 9, 2026 · SEC 13F filings and daily closes
What $10,000 became
- Copying Berkshire Hathaway$23,688
- S&P 500$24,639
- Bought their first portfolio and never traded$28,016
If you had bought their first portfolio and never traded, you would have ended at $28,016, so following every move cost $4,328.
- $10,000 copied
- $23,688
- +136.9%, +13.7% a year
- In the S&P 500
- $24,639
- +146.4%, +14.4% a year
- No trading
- $28,016
- Bought their first portfolio and never traded
- Worst fall
- −39.2%
- Feb 19, 2020 to Mar 23, 2020
- Trades
- 171
- 100 buys, 71 sales over 29 filings; about 26% of the copy traded a year
The moves that made the most
- AAPLApple+$8,038
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 356%
- AXPAmerican Express+$1,719
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 161%
- KOCoca-Cola+$1,382
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 98%
- BACBank of America+$1,319
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 74%
- CVXChevron+$764
Held since Feb 2021, the stock up 175%
- MCOMoody's+$309
Held since Feb 2020, the stock up 93%
The moves that cost the most
- GOOGLAlphabet−$375
Held since Nov 2025
- WFCWells Fargo−$249
Held from Feb 2020 to May 2022, the stock down 2%
- GOOGAlphabet−$131
Held since May 2026, the stock down 27%
Held from Feb 2020 to Feb 2021
Held since Feb 2020, the stock down 70%
Held from Feb 2020 to May 2026, the stock down 74%
Year by year
| Year | Copy | S&P 500 | Gap, pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020from Feb 2020 | +15.4% | +13.1% | +2.3 |
| 2021 | +29.4% | +28.7% | +0.7 |
| 2022 | −17.0% | −18.2% | +1.2 |
| 2023 | +24.2% | +26.2% | −2.0 |
| 2024 | +23.1% | +24.9% | −1.8 |
| 2025 | +11.4% | +17.7% | −6.3 |
| 2026to Nov 2026 | +12.2% | +11.5% | +0.7 |
A historical test on paper, before costs and taxes. It trades at the close of the first trading day after each filing comes out, up to 45 days after the quarter, and skips delisted companies, which flatters it.