Key Takeaways
- • The Gates Foundation Trust's Q2 2026 Form 13F, covering positions as of June 30, 2026 and filed August 14, 2026, reports $34.42 billion across 24 U.S.-listed stocks, with Berkshire Hathaway now the largest holding after the Trust fully exited Microsoft.
- • The Trust's five largest holdings account for 82.8% of the reported stock portfolio, and the 13F represents roughly 37.4% of the $92 billion endowment reported as of June 30, 2026.
- • The 13F portfolio fell about 28% from $47.78 billion in Q2 2025, and the Trust has been a net seller since mid-2025 as it prepares to spend down its endowment and close on December 31, 2045.
- • The Trust's Berkshire Class B position declined 13.8% in Q2 2026, from 17.05 million to 14.69 million shares, and its only new stock purchase was Home Depot at roughly $352.7 million.
- • The "Bill Gates portfolio" label conflates the foundation's endowment with Bill Gates' personal holdings, which are held through Cascade Investment, L.L.C. and are not captured in the 13F.
Summary
The Gates Foundation Trust's Q2 2026 Form 13F, filed August 14, 2026 with positions as of June 30, 2026, shows $34.42 billion across 24 U.S.-listed stocks. Berkshire Hathaway is now the Trust's largest publicly disclosed stock holding following the complete exit from Microsoft, which had been the Trust's largest position in every quarterly filing from Q4 2022 through Q2 2025 before falling to zero by Q1 2026. The portfolio is highly concentrated: its five largest holdings, led by Berkshire Hathaway, followed by Caterpillar, Canadian National Railway, Waste Management and Deere & Company, make up 82.8% of the total.
The Trust reported an endowment of $92 billion as of June 30, 2026, according to the foundation's fact sheet, up from $89 billion at December 31, 2025. That figure is unaudited. The 13F covers only U.S.-listed stocks, so non-U.S. equities, bonds, private investments and cash fall outside it, which explains why the filing represents about 37.4% of the endowment. Separately, Forbes estimated Bill Gates' personal net worth at $118.4 billion as of October 27, 2026, a figure that is not the foundation's endowment.
Trading activity in the quarter was limited. The Trust cut its Berkshire Class B holdings by 2.36 million shares, or 13.8%, and reduced Waste Management by 921,600 shares, or 3.3%. Home Depot was the only new open-market purchase, at 1 million shares valued at about $352.7 million. A 1.19 million-share FedEx Freight position resulted from a spin-off distribution. Caterpillar rose to second place on share-price appreciation rather than buying. Smaller holdings include Kraft Heinz ($58.4 million), Hormel Foods ($51.8 million), On Holding ($17.7 million) and Veralto ($11 million).
The reduction reflects the foundation's spend-down plan. The board endorsed an annual payout of $9 billion in January 2026, and the foundation plans to spend its endowment by the end of 2045. The 13F portfolio declined from $47.78 billion in Q2 2025 to $34.42 billion, a drop of roughly 28%. The filing does not explain individual sales or whether proceeds were allocated to grants.
Bill Gates' personal holdings sit outside the foundation's portfolio, managed by Cascade Investment, L.L.C. Cascade reported 117,058,444 Republic Services shares in a September 2026 Form 4, valued at roughly $26.2 billion at about $224 per share. Its AutoNation position stands at 7,062,629 shares. Cascade's Republic Services stake is not part of the Trust's 13F. Berkshire's July 2026 release also named four Buffett family foundations, not the Gates Foundation, as recipients of annual gifts, ending donations that began in 2006.
The Trust reported an endowment of $92 billion as of June 30, 2026, according to the foundation's fact sheet, up from $89 billion at December 31, 2025. That figure is unaudited. The 13F covers only U.S.-listed stocks, so non-U.S. equities, bonds, private investments and cash fall outside it, which explains why the filing represents about 37.4% of the endowment. Separately, Forbes estimated Bill Gates' personal net worth at $118.4 billion as of October 27, 2026, a figure that is not the foundation's endowment.
Trading activity in the quarter was limited. The Trust cut its Berkshire Class B holdings by 2.36 million shares, or 13.8%, and reduced Waste Management by 921,600 shares, or 3.3%. Home Depot was the only new open-market purchase, at 1 million shares valued at about $352.7 million. A 1.19 million-share FedEx Freight position resulted from a spin-off distribution. Caterpillar rose to second place on share-price appreciation rather than buying. Smaller holdings include Kraft Heinz ($58.4 million), Hormel Foods ($51.8 million), On Holding ($17.7 million) and Veralto ($11 million).
The reduction reflects the foundation's spend-down plan. The board endorsed an annual payout of $9 billion in January 2026, and the foundation plans to spend its endowment by the end of 2045. The 13F portfolio declined from $47.78 billion in Q2 2025 to $34.42 billion, a drop of roughly 28%. The filing does not explain individual sales or whether proceeds were allocated to grants.
Bill Gates' personal holdings sit outside the foundation's portfolio, managed by Cascade Investment, L.L.C. Cascade reported 117,058,444 Republic Services shares in a September 2026 Form 4, valued at roughly $26.2 billion at about $224 per share. Its AutoNation position stands at 7,062,629 shares. Cascade's Republic Services stake is not part of the Trust's 13F. Berkshire's July 2026 release also named four Buffett family foundations, not the Gates Foundation, as recipients of annual gifts, ending donations that began in 2006.
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