Warren Buffett Donates $2.86 Billion in Berkshire Hathaway Stock to Charities

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, continuing his longstanding pledge to give away part of his wealth to philanthropic causes, donated $2.86 billion in Berkshire Hathaway Inc. stock to five charities.

The bulk of the donations—14,968,423 shares of Class B shares—went to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, founded in 1994 by Microsoft Corp. co-founder and Mr. Buffett's friend Bill Gates and his wife, according to a regulatory filing.

The donation is part of Mr. Buffett's 2006 pledge to donate about 85% of his Berkshire Hathaway stock to the Gates Foundation. At the time, the gift was valued at more than $30 billion.

The Omaha, Neb., billionaire investor also donated 1.5 million Class B shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, named after his late wife, and 1.05 million Class B shares each to the Sherwood Foundation, run by his daughter; the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, run by his elder son; and the NoVo Foundation, run by his younger son, Peter, and his wife, Jennifer.

Mr. Buffett's net worth is estimated at $60.8 billion, according to Forbes's 2016 ranking, making him the world's third-richest man, behind Mr. Gates and Amancio Ortega, founder of Industria de Diseñ o Textil SA, better known as Inditex.

The donations, which reduce Mr. Buffett's voting power in the Berkshire conglomerate to 31.73%, were made Wednesday. Based on that day's closing of $145.93, the donations are worth $2.86 billion. The stock is up 10% so far this year.

Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 14, 2016 18:35 ET (22:35 GMT)

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