Can Small-Cap Stock Howard Hughes Become The Next Berkshire Hathaway?

2026-03-10 11:31:30 ET

Small-cap stock Howard Hughes Holdings (NYSE: ) hasn't set the world of fire lately. But that might change with investor Bill Ackman's plans to turn it into the next Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A / BRK.B).

Howard Hughes Holdings, formerly known as the Howard Hughes Corporation, is what remains of the business interests of legendary entrepreneur Howard Hughes.

Past holdings of Howard Hughes included a sizable tool manufacturing company, as well as casinos, hotels, aviation ventures, and television stations.

Today, Howard Hughes Holdings has been reduced to a real estate development and management company in Texas.

HHH stock has struggled mightily, with the share price down nearly 30% over the past five years. A market cap of just under $4 billion U.S. makes it a small-cap stock.

However, Howard Hughes fortunes might turnaround now that hedge fund manager Bill Ackman plans to develop it into a holding company akin to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.

Ackman has just announced plans to take his hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management public on the New York Stock Exchange.

Pershing Square plans to list on the NYSE under the ticker symbol "PS" later this year. However, the IPO is just one part of Ackman's plan.

A long-time acolyte of Buffett, Ackman says he wants to build a holding company similar to Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway that focuses on value investing.

And he wants to use Howard Hughes Holdings to accomplish his goal.

Ackman's hedge fund has acquired 47% of Howard Hughes Holdings' stock and is pushing to gain total control of the company.

The well-known investor says he wants to use Howard Hughes Holdings as a vehicle for acquiring majority stakes in other companies, similar to Berkshire Hathaway.

Whether Ackman can gain more than 50% of Howard Hughes' shares remains to be seen. But he now controls 40% of the voting power at the company and has been installed as executive chairman of Howard Hughes' board of directors.

Howard Hughes obviously has far to go to become another Berkshire Hathaway.