A Mini Berkshire Hathaway? This Insurer Comes Close.

Investors looking for a Berkshire-esque play may want to consider Fairfax Financial. (Dreamstime)

This article is an excerpt from “Amazon and 9 More Stocks to Buy for 2026,” published on Dec. 12, 2025. To see the full list, click here.

Fairfax Financial may be the closest thing to a mini Berkshire Hathaway —and it may be a better bet at this point.

The Toronto-based property and casualty insurer has strong insurance operations, an excellent investment record, and phenomenal long-term performance under founder and chairman Prem Watsa, 75. The company targets 15% annual growth in book value, against what’s probably high-single-digit growth at Berkshire. It has a market value of about $40 billion, against Berkshire’s $1.1 trillion, which makes it easier to grow.

“This is like investing in Berkshire in 1993,” says investor Charlie Frischer.

Its current price/book ratio of 1.5 is in line with Berkshire’s, but Frischer says the true figure for Fairfax is closer to a cheaper 1.25 times because some investments are carried below market value. It has an excellent portfolio of Indian investments such as a controlling stake in the Bangalore airport.

Fairfax even partners with a Berkshire alumnus, David Sokol, who was once viewed as a successor to Warren Buffett. Sokol runs a containership business in which Fairfax owns a 43% stake. The stock trades mainly in Canada, and has thinly traded U.S. shares now around $1,750.

Write to Andrew Bary at andrew.bary@barrons.com