Warren Buffett picked the final minute of his 60th shareholder meeting to drop a long-awaited announcement that was still completely surprising for his fans, most of his board and even his successor.

Buffett, the 94-year-old architect and face of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., announced that the gathering would be his last as head of the company he built from humble beginnings into one of the world’s most valuable enterprises. A few feet away, Greg Abel, the energy executive long seen as Omaha’s crown prince, wasn’t even aware his time had come.