Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B): Bill & Melinda Gates’ Trust Sells Some Shares As Its Equity Portfolio Underperforms Mr. Market

In Canadian National Railway (USA) (NYSE:CNI), the foundation holds 17.13 million shares as of the end of 2014, the value of the stake amounting to $1.18 billion. In this way, the position is not only the second-largest in the Trust’s equity portfolio, but is also the largest held by a shareholder among the funds that we track, both in size and portfolio allocation (5.9%), making it the most bullish investor among those that we track. Despite a minor setback during the first quarter, the stock of Canadian National Railway (USA) (NYSE:CNI) is well-positioned for long-term investment. The stock gained more than 60% in the last three years and its last financial results show a steady growth in revenue and profits. This is why Canadian National Railway (USA) (NYSE:CNI) is also included in the equity portfolios of 21 other funds among those that we track, including John Armitage’s Egerton Capital Limited, David E. Shaw‘s D.E. Shaw, and Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management.

The stock of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) had an even worse performance, but it didn’t take investors as a surprise. In fact, Caterpillar ranked as one of the least popular Dow stocks among the funds that we track in the latest round of 13F filings. In addition, notorious short-seller Jim Chanos said in an interview that the company is in trouble mainly because two of the three industries in which it is involved, mining and energy, are in trouble. The fact that Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) is not doing so well can also be seen from the company’s financial results, which show a significant slump in revenues since 2012 and a drop of both EBITDA and net profit. Nevertheless, two billionaire investors, David Shaw and Ken Griffin boosted their stakes in Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) during the last quarter of 2014 to 592,500 shares and 552,800 shares, respectively, although both positions amass only 0.06% of their equity portfolios.

Disclosure: None