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Buffett donates $6 billion in Berkshire stock to charities

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Buffett's total charitable giving exceeds $60 billion

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Children to oversee charitable trust after Buffett's death

By Jonathan Stempel

June 27 (Reuters) - Warren Buffett donated on Friday

another $6 billion of Berkshire Hathaway ( BRK/A ) stock to the

Gates Foundation and four family charities, his biggest annual

donation since he began giving away his fortune nearly two

decades ago.

The donation of about 12.36 million Berkshire Class B shares

boosted Buffett's overall giving to the charities to well over

$60 billion.

He donated 9.43 million shares to the Gates Foundation;

943,384 shares to the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation; and

660,366 shares to each of three charities led respectively by

his children Howard, Susie, and Peter: the Howard G. Buffett

Foundation, Sherwood Foundation and NoVo Foundation.

Warren Buffett still owns 13.8% of Berkshire's stock, based

on reported shares outstanding.

His $152 billion net worth prior to Friday's donations made

him the world's fifth-richest person, according to Forbes

magazine.

Buffett would rank sixth after the donations, which

surpassed the $5.3 billion he donated last June. He donated

another $1.14 billion to the family charities last November.

In a statement, Buffett maintained he does not intend to

sell any Berkshire shares.

Now 94, Buffett began giving away his fortune in 2006.

He changed his will last year, designating 99.5% of his

remaining fortune after his death to a charitable trust overseen

by his children.

They will have about a decade to distribute the money, and

must decide where it goes unanimously. Susie Buffett is 71,

Howard Buffett is 70, and Peter Buffett is 67.

Warren Buffett has led Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire since

1965.

The $1.05 trillion conglomerate owns close to 200 businesses

including Geico car insurance and the BNSF railroad, and dozens

of stocks including Apple ( AAPL ) and American Express ( AXP ).

Susie Buffett leads the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation,

which funds reproductive health and is named for her mother, who

was Warren Buffett's first wife.

The Sherwood Foundation supports Nebraska nonprofits and

early childhood education. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation

focuses on global hunger, combating human trafficking and

mitigating conflicts. The NoVo Foundation has initiatives

focused on marginalized girls and women, and on indigenous

communities.

Buffett said last June that donations to the Gates

Foundation would end when he dies.