The company's board voted unanimously to name Vice Chairperson Greg Abel as President and CEO starting next year, CNBC reported on Monday, citing sources while Buffett would stay as Chairperson.

The decision to hand over the reins to Abel was first announced by Buffett at Berkshire's annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, on Saturday.

Berkshire, which owns railroads, insurance companies and an ice-cream maker, has been planning for decades for the eventuality when Buffett, 94, who has run the company since 1965, is no longer there.

Still, the timing of Buffett's announcement came as a surprise as the Oracle of Omaha had not before signalled a clear intention on when to step aside.

Class B shares of the conglomerate dipped to $530.01, putting them on course to wipe out billions of Dollars in market value if losses hold through the session. They have jumped about 33% in the past year, outperforming the 12% gain in the S&P 500.

The surprising timing of the announcement, "notwithstanding likely successor Greg Abel's increasingly demonstrated competence, should pressure the shares on Monday", KBW Analyst Meyer Shields wrote in a note.

Berkshire shareholders said it remains unclear how the holding company's 189 operating businesses, $264 billion of stocks and $348 billion of cash will fare after the man so intertwined with it leaves the stage.

--Reuters--