5 Stocks Warren Buffett Is Selling (And 2 New Stakes)

Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), oversaw a relatively quiet third quarter of buying and selling stocks. Berkshire made a new investment in the retail sector, pumped up its exposure to the oil patch and pared off a sliver of Apple (AAPL), among other moves.

We know what the greatest long-term investor of all time has been doing because the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission requires all investment managers with more than $100 million in assets to file a Form 13F quarterly to disclose any changes in share ownership. These filings add an important level of transparency to the stock market and give Buffett-ologists a chance to get a bead on what he's thinking.

When Buffett starts a new stake in some company, or adds to an existing one, investors take that as a vote of confidence. On the other hand, if he pares his holdings in a stock, it can spark