In this article, we take a look at the best stocks to buy according to billionaire hedge fund managers.
July was a rocky month for multistrategy hedge funds, even though the stock market went up a bit. Ken Griffin’s Citadel handled the ups and downs fairly well. People close to the firm disclosed that Citadel’s Wellington fund gained 1.3% in July, bringing its total gain for the year to 4% after rare losses in February and March.
However, managers with big quant teams were fighting an uphill battle in July. Some systematic strategies lost ground for weeks, though a Morgan Stanley note indicated that quants recovered about 30% of their losses by the end of the month. Multistrategy funds can often handle difficult markets better than pure quant funds like Renaissance or Qube, and the credit goes to their diversification efforts. For example, Schonfeld’s $14 billion flagship fund, known for its quant teams, fell only 0.3% last month, while its fundamental equity fund climbed 1.4%, balancing losses in other segments.
The first half of 2025 has been challenging for investors, but hedge funds have held up well. Aberdeen Investments noted that the global hedge fund index was up 2.1% year-to-date through May, outpacing many traditional investments. Equity long/short strategies, especially market-neutral ones, performed well as market uncertainty weaved a path for returns.
This performance comes from mindful decision-making. As market waves tend to shift investor sentiment rapidly, hedge fund managers have remained flexible, reducing exposure, using tactical hedges, and focusing on sectors like energy and Asia-Pacific equities, which are still strong despite global uncertainty.
Consequently, the latest reports indicate that more than 60% of investors plan to increase hedge fund allocations this year, likely because hedge funds returned 10.12% in 2024 with lower volatility than global stocks, and strong performance continues to set them apart.
In this article, we will take a look at the best stocks to buy according to billionaire hedge fund managers.
Ken Griffin of Citadel Investment Group
Our Methodology
For this article, we manually reviewed billionaire hedge fund portfolios to spot stocks that ranked among their top 10 holdings in Q2 2025. These 10 stocks have also drawn recent coverage from Wall Street analysts and mainstream media.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
10. Smurfit Westrock Plc (NYSE:SW)
Billionaire: George Soros
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $322,787,329
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
Smurfit Westrock Plc (NYSE:SW) is placed 10th on our list of the best stocks to buy. The company recorded a net loss of $26 million in Q2 2025, compared to $132 million in the same quarter last year, as restructuring costs tempered its results. Smurfit reported quarterly net sales of $7.94 billion and an adjusted EBITDA of $1.21 billion, with a margin of 15.3%, compared to 16.2% in the same period last year.
SW commented that its quarterly net loss was primarily due to $280 million in costs from earlier announced closures and restructuring moves. Without these charges, Smurfit Westrock’s results matched its adjusted EBITDA guidance.
Tony Smurfit, the company President and CEO, mentioned:
“I am pleased to report a strong second-quarter performance. This performance is driven by the significant improvement in our North American business and continued excellent results from our Latin American operations, somewhat offset by a resilient performance from our EMEA and APAC businesses.”
The North American segment announced an adjusted EBITDA of $752 million with a 15.8% margin, which management credited to stronger operations and benefits from the merger between Smurfit Kappa Group and WestRock last year.
For the next quarter, the company expects adjusted EBITDA of about $1.3 billion and keeps its full-year forecast between $5 billion and $5.2 billion, assuming current market conditions remain the same.
Smurfit Westrock Plc (NYSE:SW) manufactures and distributes paper-based packaging products worldwide, such as container board, corrugated containers, consumer packaging, recycled packaging, and packaging machinery.
9. PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG)
Billionaire: Dan Loeb
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $712,334,000
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 77
PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG) is placed 9th on our list of the best stocks to buy. PCG reported Q2 profits on July 31 that marginally fell short of Wall Street estimates, as higher operating and maintenance costs weighed on results.
The company’s total operating and maintenance costs went up 3.7% to $2.86 billion in the second quarter, with wildfire-related claims and expenses from its wildfire fund also higher than last year. PG&E has been held responsible for causing several wildfires, including some of California’s deadliest, and has been investing in improving the stability of its power grid.
In a wildfire mitigation plan filed in March for 2026 to 2028, PCG mentioned that it plans to add nearly 700 miles of power lines underground and complete 500 miles of additional wildfire safety upgrades between 2025 and 2026.
CEO Patti Poppe commented on a post-earnings call that PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG) has set up over 10,000 sensors in high-risk areas to detect problems early and control outages.
The utility company added that it is preparing to meet 10 gigawatts (GW) of new electricity demand from data centers over the next decade. Right now, 17 projects worth about 1.5 GW are in the final engineering phase and are expected to go online between 2026 and 2030.
In the second quarter, the company onboarded about 3,300 new customers to its grid. Still, its operating revenue slipped a bit to $5.90 billion, down from $5.99 billion last year. Adjusted earnings came in at 31 cents per share for the quarter ending June 30, which was just shy of Wall Street’s forecast by 1 cent.
PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG) provides electricity and natural gas to customers in northern and central California. It generates power from sources like nuclear, hydro, fossil fuels, fuel cells, and solar.
8. Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)
Billionaire: David Tepper
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $801,499,204
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 101
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) is placed 8th on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 4, Alibaba launched Qwen-Image, a large 20B MMDiT model that yields better results in handling complex text in images and offers more precise tools for editing them.
The new model can be used in Qwen Chat by choosing the “Image Generation” option. It has improved text rendering skills, allowing the handling of multi-line text, paragraphs, and small details. It complements both alphabet-based languages like English and character-based ones like Chinese.
Qwen-Image utilizes an enhanced multi-task training method that enables more consistent image editing, keeping both the meaning and the realistic look of the images intact during edits.
Alibaba claims the model is superior to other tools on many public tests for image generation and editing, such as GenEval, DPG, OneIG-Bench, GEdit, ImgEdit, and GSO. It performs especially well on text rendering tests like LongText-Bench, ChineseWord, and TextCraft, beating the latest top models by a clear margin.
Besides handling text, Qwen-Image can work with many artistic styles, from photorealistic images to impressionistic paintings. The company is asking the community for feedback to help build an open and sustainable AI ecosystem. The launch for Qwen-Image was set in August 2025.
7. Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST)
Billionaire: Stephen Mandel
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $1,253,896,239
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 111
Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is placed 7th on our list of the best stocks to buy. Vistra announced that its subsidiaries have updated two important financing agreements, according to a recent SEC filing.
On July 11, three of Vistra’s subsidiaries, TXU Energy Retail Company, TXU Energy Receivables Company, and Vistra Operations Company, updated their Receivables Purchase Agreement. The amendment raises the total commitment from $1 billion to $1.1 billion and prolongs the agreement until July 10, 2026. Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank will manage the facility.
TXU Energy Retail Company, Vistra Operations Company, and some originators also upgraded the Master Framework Agreement with MUFG Bank. The change expands the repurchase facility until July 10, 2026. Both agreements are part of Vistra’s financing for receivables and repurchase facilities.
Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) is a Texas-based electricity and power generation company catering to about 5 million customers.
6. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)
Billionaire: Ken Griffin
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $986,681,144
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 124
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is placed 6th on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 22, JPMorgan announced that it will pay the Malaysian government $330 million to settle its involvement in the multibillion dollar 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state fund scandal. The settlement follows Swiss authorities finding JPM guilty and fining it for not stopping money laundering in its dealings with 1MDB.
Malaysian and American investigators indicated that at least $4.5 billion was taken from 1MDB through an international scheme that ran from 2009 to 2014.
In a joint statement, JPMorgan and the Malaysian government commented that the former will pay the settlement into Malaysia’s 1MDB Assets Recovery Trust Account without admitting liability. The agreement settles all current and future claims and prevents either side from taking further legal action related to 1MDB. Both parties will also drop all appeals tied to the lawsuit 1MDB had filed against the JPMorgan unit in the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The Swiss Attorney General’s Office said that JPMorgan’s Swiss unit was guilty of not having proper safeguards to stop aggravated money laundering linked to 1MDB and fined it 3 million Swiss francs, equivalent to $3.71 million. The case was tied to two oil company executives convicted last year of embezzling over $1.8 billion from the fund.
JPMorgan commented that it has since strengthened its controls and regained regulators’ trust.
5. Uber Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:UBER)
Billionaire: Bill Ackman
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $2,827,098,321
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 152
Uber Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:UBER) is placed 5th on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 25, Citizens JMP kept its Market Perform rating on Uber, maintaining its outlook for the company. This comes as the autonomous vehicle market develops, with major players like Alphabet’s Waymo hovering near its 52-week high.
The firm’s analysts see Apollo Go as Waymo’s closest international competitor in the autonomous vehicle market, making it an important player in the global self-driving technology industry.
Citizens JMP anticipates that Uber will work more closely with Apollo Go to bring autonomous vehicles to the Middle East. This potential partnership would be an important step in expanding Uber’s self-driving technology internationally. The firm also believes that Uber’s partnership with Apollo Go could grow past the Middle East into other global markets.
Citizens JMP did not alter Uber’s price targets and stressed on the company’s plans for autonomous vehicles and global partnerships.
4. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Billionaire: Warren Buffett
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $57,447,600,000
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 156
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is placed 4th on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 14, Apple announced that it is restoring the blood oxygen tracking feature on Apple Watches in the US after settling a long legal battle with Masimo Corp.
The company is bringing back the blood oxygen feature through its new iOS 18.6.1 and watchOS 11.6.1 updates. The feature was taken off in late 2023 because of a patent lawsuit and a US Customs order.
Apple changed how its blood oxygen feature works. Instead of showing the results directly on the Apple Watch, the data is now processed on the paired iPhone, and users can see the results in the Respiratory section of the Health app.
The company mentioned that this update was allowed by a recent US Customs ruling. The update applies to American users of Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 that were sold with the blood oxygen feature turned off. Watches that already have the feature, or those bought outside the United States, will not be affected.
3. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)
Billionaire: Chase Coleman
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $5,560,419,467
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 260
Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is placed 3rd on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 20, Meta announced that it had stopped hiring in its AI division after bringing in more than 50 AI researchers and engineers over the past few months.
The hiring freeze started last week and is part of a bigger restructuring in Meta’s AI division. The changes also prevent current employees from moving between teams within the division. There is no clear timeline for the end of the freeze.
Earlier this year, Meta went on a big AI hiring push, offering nine-figure salaries to lure talent from major AI companies like OpenAI. The company also reportedly used reverse acquihires to take key staff from start-ups. Meta has reorganized its AI division into four teams, including one focused on superintelligence. Zuckerberg personally led efforts to recruit top talent from OpenAI, Google, Apple, and AI startups, even offering huge sums to lure them in.
The company is seen as one of Wall Street’s “AI Hyperscalers”, a group of big tech firms investing massive amounts into AI development and data centers. Meta alone has set aside around $72 billion for AI this year. However, this heavy spending has worried investors, who are concerned that higher costs and generous stock-based compensation could hurt profits.
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Billionaire: Steve Cohen
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $1,212,199,297
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 294
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is placed 2nd on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 20, Microsoft mentioned that it has limited some Chinese companies’ access to its early warning system for cybersecurity problems, after concerns that Beijing might be behind a hacking campaign targeting its popular SharePoint servers.
The new limits come after last month’s major hacking attempts on Microsoft SharePoint servers, which Microsoft and others have partly blamed on Beijing. Some cybersecurity experts worry that the Microsoft Active Protections Program (MAPP), which gives security vendors around the world, including in China, early information on threats to help them defend against hackers, might have been compromised.
Beijing has denied being involved in the SharePoint hacks. Reuters previously reported that Microsoft warned MAPP program members about the SharePoint vulnerabilities on June 24, July 3, and July 7. Since Microsoft mentioned that it first detected attacks on July 7, some experts think the spike in hacking attempts might have been caused by a rogue MAPP member misusing the early warning information.
Microsoft added that several Chinese companies will no longer get “proof of concept” code, which imitates real malware. This code helps security experts protect systems faster, but it can also be used by hackers.
Microsoft monitors its partners and can suspend or remove anyone who breaks the rules, which forbid offensive attacks. The company did not share details about the investigation or which companies were restricted.
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Billionaire: Israel Englander
Billionaire’s Stake Value: $995,164,229
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 335
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is placed 1st on our list of the best stocks to buy. On August 21, JPMorgan reported that Amazon grew its lead in the American e-commerce market during Q2 2025, mainly because of faster retail growth and strong logistics.
In its updated e-commerce model for the United States, JPMorgan mentioned that online sales grew 5.3% in the second quarter compared to last year, which is close to the 5.6% growth seen in the first quarter. Analysts added that US e-commerce kept growing for the tenth quarter in a row, increasing by 0.17% from last year to make up 21.9% of adjusted retail sales.
JPMorgan noted that Amazon’s retail business did better than the overall market, with global first-party sales up 10% from last year, compared to 6% growth in the previous quarter. Third-party sales also rose 10%, up from 7% in the first quarter, driven by high demand for essentials, very fast SD1D delivery, and growth of the Prime ecosystem.
JPMorgan analysts estimate that Amazon’s share of the US e-commerce market went up by more than two points from last year, reaching 46.8% in the second quarter. They expect it to grow to 47.4% in Q3 and 49.2% in Q4.
The analysts maintained that Amazon is positioned as the leader in e-commerce and kept it as their “Best Idea.”
While we acknowledge the potential of AMZN to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than AMZN and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
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