UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) has become one of Warren Buffett’s most profitable fresh bets of 2025.
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) disclosed in its latest 13F filing that it acquired 5,039,564 shares of UnitedHealth last quarter at an average purchase price of $311.97 per share. The position was valued at exactly $1.57 billion at the time of purchase, making it one of Berkshire’s most notable new entries in Q2 2025.
Since then, the healthcare giant’s stock has climbed sharply. UnitedHealth closed Thursday’s session at $353.61, up 13.35% from Buffett’s reported entry price.
That translates into a paper gain of roughly $210 million for Berkshire, lifting the position’s current value to about $1.78 billion.
The rally has also been fueled by the so-called “Buffett effect.” UnitedHealth closed at $271.49 before Berkshire’s holding was disclosed, meaning the stock has surged more than 30% since the news broke, as investors followed Buffett into the trade.
Why did Buffett buy UNH shares?
Notably, UnitedHealth traded as high as $621.24 within the past year before sliding nearly 60% to its summer lows. Berkshire’s entry price of $311.97 suggests that Buffett and his team saw the stock as significantly undervalued relative to its long-term fundamentals.
Rather than a broad bet on healthcare defensiveness, the purchase looks like a classic Buffett value play: acquiring a market leader with stable cash flows and dominant market share at a steep discount to its historical highs.
For now, the bet is paying off handsomely. If UnitedHealth sustains its upward momentum, Buffett’s healthcare pivot could prove to be one of Berkshire’s standout trades of the year.
