So far, 2020 has been a strong year for the investor, who has reportedly benefited from hedges made before stock and other markets became turbulent because of the pandemic.

Prominent US investor Bill Ackman, renowned for his shareholder investment, has reportedly exited his stake in Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate.

Ackman reportedly (Barron’s, others) said he still likes Buffett’s business but thinks his fund is better placed to move fast as new opportunities arise. Ackman’s firm is Pershing Square Holdings.

“Today, we have $10 billion of capital to invest. We can be much more nimble,” Ackman said on a call with investors yesterday. “And so our view was generally we should take advantage of that nimbleness, preserve some extra liquidity in the event that prices get more attractive again.”

Family Wealth Report examined the media/investor relations websites of Berkshire Hathaway and Pershing Square. It was unable to locate a specific reference to Ackman’s investor exit and has contacted Pershing Square for comment. It may update this article in due course. Pershing Square did have a reference to share transactions, dated May 27, but it is unclear if that has anything to do with the story. 

(Barron’s report noted that Ackman’s fund also recently exited positions in Blackstone and Park Hotels & Resorts).

The reports noted that so far, 2020 has been a positive year for Ackman because the funds he manages are up by between 22 per cent and 27 per cent. The gains are partly driven by hedges he placed before the March turmoil caused by the pandemic.