If you’ve been following Warren Buffett’s moves lately, you might have noticed something interesting buried in Berkshire Hathaway’s latest quarterly report. It looks like the Oracle of Omaha may have quietly sold off more Apple shares during the third quarter — continuing what’s become one of the most talked-about investment decisions of 2024.

Here’s what caught investors’ attention: Berkshire’s recent filing shows that the cost basis of its consumer products equity holdings dropped by about $1.2 billion compared to the previous quarter. Now, since Apple dominates that category in Berkshire’s portfolio, it’s a pretty safe bet that this decline means Buffett and his team have been selling more of those iPhone maker shares.

And honestly, the timing makes sense. Apple’s stock absolutely soared in the third quarter, jumping more than 24%. For someone like Buffett, who’s always looking for the right moment to lock in gains, that kind of rally would’ve been hard to ignore.

A Surprising Shift for a Long-Term Believer

What’s really turned heads this year is just how much Apple stock Buffett has been offloading. Throughout 2024, he’s sold off a staggering two-thirds of Berkshire’s Apple position — a move that caught many people off guard, considering Buffett’s legendary reputation for buying and holding for the long haul. Even after trimming the position again in the second quarter of this year, Apple was still Berkshire’s biggest holding as of the end of June, with 280 million shares worth around $57 billion.

We won’t know the exact details until Berkshire files its 13F with the Securities and Exchange Commission later this month. That regulatory filing will spell out precisely what happened with individual stock holdings through September 30, so investors should get a clearer picture soon.

So Why Is Buffett Selling?

Buffett himself has previously suggested that taxes played a role in his decision to reduce the Apple stake. But let’s be real — when you’re selling that much stock, there’s probably more to the story. Many market watchers think Buffett might be concerned about Apple’s valuation getting a bit stretched. Others believe it’s simply smart portfolio management. After all, at one point, Apple made up more than half of Berkshire’s entire equity portfolio. That’s a lot of eggs in one basket, even if it’s a pretty great basket.

Here’s what’s especially notable: Berkshire has now been a net seller of stocks for 12 consecutive quarters. In the third quarter alone, the company raised over $6 billion in cash. That’s a lot of dry powder sitting on the sidelines.

And if you’re wondering whether Buffett sees trouble ahead, consider this: his once-favorite metric for gauging whether the overall stock market is overvalued — which compares the total value of all U.S. publicly traded stocks to the country’s entire gross national product — has climbed to an all-time high. Buffett himself once described this level as “playing with fire.”

Make of that what you will, but it certainly seems like the 94-year-old investing legend is being extra cautious right now. Whether he’s simply being prudent or sees storm clouds on the horizon, investors will be watching his next moves closely.