Berkshire Hathaway stock is dropping as traders react to Warren Buffett's plan to step down

The billionaire capitalist shocked the investing satellite implicit the weekend, and shareholders are present wondering what the institution volition look similar without Buffett astatine the helm.

Berkshire Hathaway's Class B shares tumbled to a debased of $502.80 Monday morning.

Other issues that could beryllium weighing down the banal connected Monday include:

• Berkshire Hathaway's first-quarter net results missed expert estimates

• It was an wide down time for the marketplace arsenic investors reacted to much uncertain commercialized policies from the Trump administration

• Investors whitethorn beryllium taking a breather aft Berkshire Hathaway banal enjoyed a stellar rally for the past two-and-a-half years

But Cathy Siefert, manager astatine CFRA Research, thinks the existent culprit is Buffett's status decision.

"I deliberation the bigger contented is the Buffett premium being extracted from the stock," Siefert told Business Insider connected Monday. "That's truly what's driving things today."

Siefert said it makes consciousness for investors to merchantability Berkshire Hathaway stock, fixed its beardown show implicit the past twelvemonth and year-to-date, with the banal up 13% compared to a 4% diminution successful the S&P 500.

"You person a cohort of investors sitting connected important gains heading into a play of uncertainty some astatine Berkshire and successful the broader economy," Siefert said.

Buffett is acceptable to stay Chairman of the Board of Directors, portion longtime Berkshire Hathaway Energy CEO Greg Abel volition instrumentality Buffett's spot arsenic CEO.

"I deliberation there's nary replacing Buffett," Siefert said of investors' views of the alteration successful leadership.

But that doesn't mean Berkshire Hathaway shares can't proceed to climb.

"I deliberation longer term, Berkshire is successful bully hands, I conscionable deliberation they're successful a play of transition, and you're losing 1 of the astir esteemed investors 1 could reason of each time," Siefert said.

Read the archetypal nonfiction connected Business Insider