5 Best FMCG Stocks To Buy Now

In this article, we discuss the 5 best FMCG stocks to buy now. If you want to read our industry analysis you can see the 12 Best FMCG Stocks To Buy Now.

5. Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 68

Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) is an American multinational retail company that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores and grocery stores from the United States.

On December 9, Bernstein analyst Dean Rosenblum initiated coverage of Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) with a Market Perform rating and $159 price target. The analyst is “cautiously bullish” on the U.S. hardlines / broadlines retail sector, stating that the current long-term fundamentals “remain sound,” and both the grocery and home improvement subsectors are “surprisingly well-insulated” from e-commerce incursion.

As of the end of Q3 2022, 68 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT), compared with 67 in the previous quarter. The collective value of stakes owned by these hedge funds is over $4.08 billion.

Leaven Partners mentioned Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in its Q3 2022 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:

“In our last quarterly letter, I briefly mentioned that the consensus estimates for corporate profits appeared to be a bit too sanguine. I referenced a Reuters article that reported, as of June 17, Wall Street expected S&P 500 earnings to grow by 9.6% in 2022, which was up from 8.8% in April and from 8.4% in January. That tune began to change at the end of July and accelerated in August and September, as major players, such as Walmart (NYSE:WMT), has recently issued profit warnings and/or have withdrawn guidance. In response, Wall Street has altered its outlook: lowering third-quarter profit growth to 4.6%^[2] from 7.2% in early August and slashing full-year profit growth to 4.5%.”

4. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders:69

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is an American multinational corporation that engages in the operation of membership warehouses, leading as one of the biggest retailers in the world across several selected categories.

On December 10, Truist analyst Scot Ciccarelli lowered the price target on Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) to $538 from $557 after its Q1 earnings miss but maintained a Buy rating on the shares. According to the analyst, Q1 sales remained extremely steady on a stacked basis despite some big-ticket softness, while sales of necessities like food and sundries also remained “very strong”.

As of the close of Q3 2022, 69 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned stakes in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST), up from 64 in the previous quarter. These stakes have an aggregate value of over $4.42 billion. With stakes over $1.2 billion, Fisher Asset Management owned the largest position in the company in Q3.

Cooper Investors shared its outlook on Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) in its Q3 2022 investor letter. Here’s what the firm said:

“The US economy continues to run hot – the labour market is extremely tight and a number of executives we spoke to described their challenges in retaining staff and preventing competitors from poaching talent. Industrial companies in particular continue to see record backlogs, with the easing of logistics and supply chain constraints only just starting to have an impact on deliveries and lead times.

In terms of inflationary pressures, the vast majority of our holdings have been able to leverage strong market positions and stakeholder relationships to push pricing through in 2022 such that minimal impact to earnings has occurred. Clearly this is not a lever than can be pulled indefinitely but the more experienced management teams have kept some of their powder dry. Our meeting with management at Costco in Seattle was memorable for several reasons but one was their latent ability to increase member pricing which they have not done in over 5 years (and thus likely to do in 2023)…

…To conclude we’ll return to our meeting with Costco mentioned earlier. The business quality is no secret after decades of incredible execution, but the meeting gave us renewed conviction around Value Latencies in terms of the runway for growth, the focus on enhancing customer value, Costco’s vast buying power (it purchases 30% of the world’s jumbo cashews as one example) and management’s feral focus on the business model and cost discipline.”

3. The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 69

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) is an Ohio-based multinational consumer goods company that specializes in a wide range of personal care and hygiene products. One of the strongest dividend players in the US, it has paid regular dividends to shareholders for the past 132 years. As of December 9, the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share for a dividend yield of 2.42%.

Jefferies analyst Kevin Grundy raised the price target on The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) to $164 from $149 and kept a Buy rating on the shares following P&G’s “upbeat” investor day meeting on November 22.

At the end of the third quarter of 2022, 69 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $4 billion in The Procter and Gamble Company (NYSE:PG), compared to 71 in the preceding quarter worth $5.5 billion. Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital was one of the company’s leading shareholders at the close of Q3, with stakes worth approximately $712.2 million.

2. PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 72

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) is an American multinational food, snack, and beverage company that operates on a business model that covers all facets of the food and beverage market, thus leading as one of the best FMCG company in the world. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share and has a dividend yield of of 2.51%, as of December 7.

On December 7, Argus analyst John Staszak raised the price target on PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) to $206 from $195 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares. Based on the analyst’s remarks, the company is well-managed, offers a valuable brand portfolio, and continues to generate solid growth amid weak demand for many consumer staples.

The number of hedge funds holding investments in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) grew to 72 in Q3 2022, from 65 in the previous quarter. The stakes owned by these hedge funds have a total value of over $4.8 billion. Fundsmith LLP was the company’s leading stakeholder in Q3.

In its Q2 2022 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Also in the stable and predictable cash flow camp, though with a very different business model, global food and beverage company PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP) reported very strong organic growth in the first quarter, driven by healthy price/mix, and raised revenue guidance, while holding EPS guidance. Notably, its beverage business showed expanding margins.”

1. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 85

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods.

At the beginning of December, Morgan Stanley analyst Terence Flynn raised the price target on Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) to $178 from $170 and kept an Equal Weight rating on the shares as he refreshed his sum-of-the-parts valuation ahead of the company separating its Consumer Health segment into an independent company, to be known as “Kenvue,” in the second half of 2023.

Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) with 5.92 million shares worth more than $967.3 million. Overall, 85 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned stakes in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), with a total value of over $5.46 billion.

In its Q2 2022 investor letter, Mayar Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:

“Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is currently our largest position and a long-standing holding. The majority of the group’s sales come from its collection of pharmaceutical franchises, but a large majority (~45%) comes from its collection of medical device businesses and its consumer brands.

Here’s how JNJ make and spends a dollar of revenues: As of 2021, about 55 cents of that dollar comes from its pharmaceutical sales – sales of drugs to pharmacies and distributors – while 30 cents come from the sale of medical devices, such as surgery equipment and orthopaedics. The rest of that dollar in sales comes from sales of JNJ’s consumer brands such as Listerine mouthwash, Nicorette nicotine tablets and Neutrogena cosmetics (…read more)

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