In this article, we discuss 10 stocks to invest in now according to Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of Bozza’s history, investment philosophy, and hedge fund performance, go directly to 5 Stocks to Invest in Now According to Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital.
Anthony Bozza‘s Lakewood Capital Management is a hedge fund established in New York City. Mr. Bozza graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School with a BS summa cum laude in Economics. He honed his investment abilities at SAB Capital Management, Gleacher & Co., and KKR before starting his own investment management business. In 2007, Anthony Bozza founded Lakewood Capital Management, where he continues to serve as the managing partner of the fund. In addition to his prowess with long positions, Bozza is also known for being a savvy short seller.
Lakewood Capital Management invests using a long-term fundamental approach with a strong focus on capital preservation. It invests in a range of industries using a long/short strategy. The fund was 107.4% long and 44.9% short for net equity exposure of 62.5% as of June 30, 2020. At the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F portfolio counted 65 long positions and carried a value of $2.36 billion, with 47.05% of that value concentrated in its top ten holdings. During the quarter, the fund initiated 14 new positions, boosted its stakes in 14 stocks, exited positions in 4 equities and lowered its position in 22 stocks.
Some of the top holdings in the hedge fund’s portfolio include Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA).
Lakewood Capital sold 208,000 shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) in the fourth quarter, reducing its remaining stake by about 33%. At the end of the quarter, the hedge fund still held more than 435,368 shares of Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), worth about $51.72 million. On January 31, Mizuho analyst James Lee decreased his price target for Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) from $215 to $180 but maintained a ‘Buy’ rating. The expert predicted a problematic fourth quarter for the corporation.
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Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is one of the latest acquisitions of Lakewood Capital, being added to the fund’s portfolio during Q4 2021. The hedge fund held shares worth over $52.16 million in the company, representing 2.21% of its 13F portfolio. On February 2, Erste Group’s Hans Engel upgraded Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) from ‘Hold’ to ‘Buy’. In a research note to investors, Engel anticipated that international travel would increase this year, resulting in higher transaction volumes for Visa.
Anthony Bozza is bullish on Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) as well, boosting his stake in the company by 5% in the fourth quarter. On January 28, Cowen analyst Gregory Williams raised his price target on Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) to $64 from $60 and reiterated an ‘Outperform’ rating on its shares.
Our Methodology
With this background in mind, let’s start our list of 10 stocks to invest in now according to Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital. For this list, we considered Bozza’s 13F portfolio as of the end of Q4 2021. Overall hedge fund data is based on the exclusive group of 900+ funds tracked by Insider Monkey that filed 13Fs for the Q4 2021 reporting period.
10 Stocks to Invest in Now According to Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital
10. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)
Lakewood Capital Management Stake Value: $73,642,000
Percentage of Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.12%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 19
Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) is in the business of selling automobiles. It also offers new and used vehicles and light trucks, as well as financing, service contracts, automotive maintenance and repair services, and vehicle components. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share on February 17, up 2.9% from the previous payment of $0.35.
Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) was in 19 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, over 25% lower than the all-time high of 26. At the end of Q3 2021, there were 24 hedge funds in our database with Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) stakes. Eminence Capital is the leading shareholder of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) among the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, owning 506,861 shares of the company worth over $98.95 million.
Next on the list is Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital, which owns 377,226 shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI), worth over $73.64 million. In addition to Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) is a notable stock found in Anthony Bozza’s fourth quarter portfolio.
9. Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC)
Lakewood Capital Management Stake Value: $78,747,000
Percentage of Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.34%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) is a recreational marine product company that designs, manufactures, and markets marine engines, boats, as well as components and accessories for those products. Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) announced on February 14 that it has expanded its collaboration with Arkema, a specialty materials company, to build a 100% recyclable fiberglass boat.
Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) paid a quarterly dividend of $0.365 per share on February 17, a 9% increase over the previous payout of $0.335. Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) was given a ‘Buy’ rating and $118 price target by Citi analyst James Hardiman on February 10. According to Hardiman’s assessment, Brunswick is the largest and most successful corporation in the maritime industry.
In the fourth quarter, hedge fund sentiment towards Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) increased, as Insider Monkey’s data shows that 42 elite hedge funds held stakes in Brunswick Corporation (NYSE:BC) at the end of December, up from 39 funds a quarter earlier.
8. Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)
Lakewood Capital Management Stake Value: $85,180,000
Percentage of Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.61%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 97
Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) is a holding company that, through its primary subsidiary Citibank, provides consumer banking services such as credit cards, checking and savings accounts, mortgage loans, and small business services. On February 1, Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)’s retail credit segment announced a multi-year credit card deal and a new version of ExxonMobil’s private label credit card.
Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo cut his price target on Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) to $80 from $85 on February 15 and maintained an ‘Overweight’ rating on the stock. Mayo lowered his EPS forecast for the company in 2022 to a new low, citing fewer buybacks, a jumbled worldwide framework, and other issues that Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)’s board of directors have ignored for far too long.
In the fourth quarter of 2021, 97 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $6.60 billion in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C), up from 79 the preceding quarter, which were worth $5.59 billion.
Artisan Partners Limited Partnership highlighted a few stocks in its first-quarter 2021 investor letter, and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“We fully exited position in Citigroup. Global financial services company Citigroup made a $900 million clerical error and received a public reprimand from federal regulators. This, after a decade focused on process control, information technology and risk systems, makes the error substantially more costly than just the $900 million mistake. Regulators believe the company’s risk management improvements have fallen short of expectations. To rectify the situation, a process and technology spending surge could negatively affect 2021-2022 profits by 10% to 20%. Trust and confidence are important in large financial institutions, and this incident combined with the CEO’s sudden retirement shook ours.”
7. First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF)
Lakewood Capital Management Stake Value: $93,454,000
Percentage of Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.96%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 30
First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) is a financial services firm based in the United States. Following the company’s Q4 results, Barclays analyst Mark DeVries boosted his price target on First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) to $92 from $87 and maintained an ‘Overweight’ rating on the stock.
In its fourth quarter earnings published on February 10, First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) revealed that EPS hit $2.33 during the period, beating estimates by $0.53. In addition, its $2.4 billion in revenue was up by 11.6% year-over-year and exceeded estimates by $350 million.
In the fourth quarter of 2021, 30 hedge funds had stakes in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF), the total value of which was over $1.75 billion. Parag Vora’s HG Vora Capital Management is the biggest stakeholder of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) among them with 10.30 million shares worth $805.77 million.
In its fourth quarter 2020 Investor Letter, Ensemble Capital Management, an investment management firm, mentioned First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF). Here is what the fund said:
“A notable detractor from our performance came from our investment in First American Financial Corporation. The stock of this title insurance company is our only holding that generated negative returns in 2020. With the company generating revenue from both existing and new home transactions, we think it will benefit greatly from our thesis that home activity has been depressed and will increase significantly in the years ahead. The stock rebounded from the pandemic driven sell off from March to July but has been relatively flat since then. It generated a return of just over 2% in the fourth quarter. While there are some valid concerns about an outstanding legal case related to a cybersecurity breach in 2019, the stock trades at just nine times its pre-pandemic 2019 reported earnings.”
6. Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA)
Lakewood Capital Management Stake Value: $94,763,000
Percentage of Lakewood Capital Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.02%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) is a company that makes, sells, and distributes coatings systems. Duffy Fischer, a Barclays analyst, initiated coverage of Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) with an ‘Overweight’ rating and $35 price target on February 17.
37 hedge funds held stakes in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, worth $1.19 billion, compared to the same number of funds in the preceding quarter holding stakes worth $1.05 billion.
Anthony Bozza’s hedge fund was one of those shareholders, entering 2022 with 2.86 million shares of Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) in its portfolio worth around $94.76 million. Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) has featured in Bozza’s portfolio since the fourth quarter of 2020.
Like Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), Visa Inc. (NYSE:V), and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (NYSE:AXTA) is an intriguing stock to invest in according to Anthony Bozza.
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Disclosure: None. 10 Stocks to Invest in Now According to Anthony Bozza’s Lakewood Capital is originally published on Insider Monkey.
