Despite a rapidly changing tech landscape, few investors are likely to dispute the assertion that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock will remain a long-term winner. While its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities may not receive as much attention as those of Nvidia or Palantir, its massive resources, improving technology, and customer loyalty will likely keep the company a major force in its industry for some time to come.

Knowing those attributes, investors may have trouble reconciling the investment case for Apple, considering that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) sold a large chunk of its shares. Still, those sales likely have more to do with Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway than the investment case for Apple. Here's why.

Amid the trust and confidence Warren Buffett has amassed over the last few decades, many investors sometimes want to copy the moves of the investment giant. Investors anxiously await the release of the company's 13F filing every three months, highlighting the company's investment moves over the previous quarter.

One move that has drawn considerable attention is its massive sales of Apple stock. As recently as the third quarter of 2023, Berkshire held close to 916 million Apple shares, and the stock made up over 49% of Berkshire Hathaway's equity holdings.

However, late last year, Berkshire began to sell Apple, and the share selling accelerated in 2024. By the third quarter of 2024, that position had fallen to 300 million shares, now making up approximately 25% of Berkshire's holdings.

Unfortunately, investors often misunderstand Berkshire Hathaway's situation as an investment firm. It does not see the investing landscape in the same way a small investor might, and, due to its size, it has to stay aware of how its purchases and sales may affect a stock.

Berkshire held about $272 billion worth of stock and now has a record $325 billion in liquidity as of the end of the third quarter of 2024. To put that into perspective, Berkshire's cash pile exceeds the market cap of all but 25 companies that trade on U.S. exchanges today.

While this situation offers Berkshire considerable power, it also makes investing difficult. For one, putting a significant amount of that liquidity in one stock would buy out most companies trading today.

Additionally, Berkshire's size significantly affects stock prices. When an average investor buys or sells 100 shares of a company that trades five million shares daily, it does not materially affect the stock price.