Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller’s New Stock Picks Include Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS)

Another energy stock among Druckenmiller’s new stocks picks was offshore driller Noble Corporation (NYSE:NE); the filing showed a little over 1 million shares in his portfolio. Revenue and earnings both rose about 25% in Noble Corporation (NYSE:NE)’s most recent quarter compared to the same period in the previous year. While current market prices already include some future growth (the trailing P/E is 18), analysts think investors are underestimating the company- their projections imply a forward earnings multiple of only 8. Point State Capital, founded by Sean Cullinan and many of Druckenmiller’s other former Duquesne portfolio managers, was another major shareholder in the stock.

The billionaire bought about 230,000 shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) between January and March of this year. As with many megabanks, Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS)’s earnings multiples are low- it trades at 11 times earnings whether we consider trailing results or forecasts for 2014. Business has been about flat, but it’s still cheap enough to be a potential value play and we’d be quite interested in comparing the bank to its peers. There is a small premium to book value, with a P/B ratio of 1.1. Also reporting a new position in Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) for last quarter was Ken Heebner’s Capital Growth Management (research more stocks Heebner was buying).

Rounding out our list of Druckenmiller’s largest new picks is $85 billion market cap pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD). Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) is another company experiencing rapid growth, with earnings rising over 60% in the first quarter of 2013 versus a year earlier, with lower but still respectable top-line growth of 11%. With the stock price more than doubling in the last year, however, the stock is valued at trailing and forward P/Es of 29 and 18 respectively, and so the company must continue to improve to justify the current valuation.

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