Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Cheap Stock Picks for Q3 Include Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)

One of Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC)’s peers, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) was another of Fisher’s cheap stock picks. Market sentiment is poorer on JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) than on Wells Fargo, possibly because of recent legal concerns related to the company’s business practices being challenged by regulators. The trailing P/E is only 9, despite the fact that (as with megabanks generally) earnings increased at a high rate last quarter compared to the second quarter of 2012- over 30% in this case. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) had been one of the most popular stocks among hedge funds during Q1 (check out the full top ten list).

Fisher disclosed ownership of about 17 million shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in the filing. While the earnings multiples are low here- trailing and forward P/Es of 12 and 10 respectively- investors should be aware that recent and near-future earnings numbers may be seeing a temporary bump to the release of new versions of Windows and Office. This factor should be accounted for when modeling out earnings further into the future. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) pays a dividend yield of nearly 3% at current prices. Jeffrey Ubben’s ValueAct Capital initiated a large position in the first quarter of the year and may push for changes at the company.

Rounding out our list of Fisher’s low P/E stock picks is Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC). Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) is also a cheap pick in terms of valuation metrics, with a trailing earnings multiple of 12, but so far the company has not handled the shift in consumer preferences away from PCs well. Revenue fell 5% last quarter compared to the second quarter of 2012, contributing to a 29% decline in net income. It is a high yield stock, with a dividend yield of 3.9%, but we would be concerned about future financial performance. Renaissance Technologies, founded by billionaire Jim Simons, reported owning about 17 million shares at the beginning of April (see more stocks Renaissance liked).

With that in mind, here are a couple stories that may get your mind off of the markets:

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Disclosure: I own no shares of any stocks mentioned in this article.