9 Stocks to Buy According to Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital

In this article, we discuss 9 stocks to buy according to Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane capital.

Robert W. Koehn earned a B.A. in Economics from Princeton University and an MBA from UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. He began his career working as an associate at First Union Capital Markets. Robert W. Koehn also worked as a senior associate and director at a Private equity fund manager. He also served the Redan Capital Management, LP as a general partner. Currently, he is working as the managing partner at Ivy Lane Capital.

Ivy Lane Capital is a fundamental value-oriented hedge fund located in Miami, Florida, founded by Robert Koehn in 2010. The majority of Ivy Lane’s 13F portfolio in Q4 2021 is split between three sectors: information technology, finance, and communications. The heaviest sector, technology, accounted for 38.67% of the portfolio.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), and BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) were among the most significant positions in Ivy Lane Capital’s portfolio.

In the fourth quarter, the hedge fund did not change its stake in Microsoft Corporation. Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital holds 86,000 shares of Microsoft Corporation, valued at $28.92 million. On February 8, Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss maintained an Overweight rating on Microsoft Corporation and gave a 372 price target of $372.

Robert W. Koehn’s hedge fund owns 9,700 shares of Alphabet Inc., worth over $28.07 million. After the business posted another solid quarter, Stifel analyst Scott Devitt boosted his price objective on Alphabet Inc. from $3,200 to $3,500 and reiterated a Buy recommendation on the stock.

Another outstanding stock in the fourth quarter portfolio of Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital was BlackRock, Inc.. On February 18, Deutsche Bank analyst Brian Bedell kept a Buy rating on BlackRock, Inc. but reduced his price target to $1,024 from $1,125. The analyst provided a mid-Q1 outlook for brokers and asset managers, stating that rate-sensitive stocks will be preferred for at least the next two quarters.

Our Methodology

Let’s analyze the list of 9 stocks to buy according to Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital. We used Koehn’s 13F portfolio for Q4 2021 for this analysis.

Stocks to Buy According to Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital

9. Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE:INGR)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $5,992,000

Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 4.21%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25

Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE:INGR) located in Westchester, Illinois, is a worldwide ingredient producer specializing in starch, modified starches, and starch sugars such as glucose syrup and high fructose syrup. Ingredion Incorporated is getting the attention of the smart money, as 25 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey reported owning stakes in the company at the end of the fourth quarter, up from 20 funds a quarter earlier.

Ingredion Incorporated is one of the latest acquisitions of Ivy Lane Capital in Q4 2021. The hedge fund bought 62,000 shares worth over $5.99 million in Ingredion Incorporated, representing 4.21% of its 13F portfolio.

Ingredion Incorporated, on February 3, posted earnings for the fourth quarter. The reported EPS came in at $1.09, below estimates by $0.20. However, revenue over the period gained 10.7% compared to the previous year’s quarter, reaching $1.76 billion, outperforming estimates by $40 million.

Robert W. Koehn’s Ivy Lane Capital holds a significant stake in Ingredion Incorporated, in addition to owning significant positions in Microsoft Corporation, Alphabet Inc., and BlackRock, Inc..

8. EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $6,008,000

Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 4.22%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 29

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) is a global satellite communication and internet services supplier. Ivy Lane Capital boosted its stake in EchoStar Corporation by 11% as of Q4 2021, holding 228,000 shares worth $6.01 million.

On February 24, EchoStar Corporation published earnings for the fourth quarter, reporting a loss per share of $0.83, missing estimates by $1.22. Revenue over the period came in at $498.64 million, up 1.9% year-over-year.

By the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, Insider Monkey identified 29 hedge funds that had stakes in EchoStar Corporation. The total value of these stakes was over $216.82 million. As of March 4, 2022, Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies is the leading stakeholder in EchoStar Corporation. The fund owns more than 2.08 million shares of stock worth $54.76 million.

7. Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $9,241,000

Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 6.5%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 55

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO) is a company that makes interactive software games and publishes them. Robert W. Koehn elevated his position in Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. by 56% in Q4 2021, holding 52,000 shares valued at $9.24 million.

Take-Two Interactive was raised from Neutral to Buy by MKM Partners analyst Eric Handler on March 4, with a price objective of $200.

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. was in 55 hedge fund portfolios at the end of the fourth quarter, according to Insider Monkey. The total stakes that these funds had in the company are worth $1.49 billion, up from $1.20 billion the prior quarter with 53 positions.

In its fourth-quarter 2021 investor letter, Arch Capital Management, an investment management firm, mentioned Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.. Here is what the fund said:

“Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is an American video game publisher of franchises like Grand Theft Auto (GTA), Red Dead Redemption (RDR), and NBA 2K. It is currently one of the larger positions in the fund at an 8.3% allocation.

We are bullish on Take-Two because we believe the company has competitive advantages that will keep its franchises relevant for many years. First, its games have distinct network effects that keep it insulated from competitors. Multiplayer online games are only fun if others are also playing them, creating a winner-take-all effect that has specifically benefited GTA and NBA 2K over the last decade.

On top of network effects, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. has decades of developmental expertise and over 5,000 developers across its divisions, giving it semi-strong economies of scale that insulate it from most competitors. Yes, large competitors like Microsoft or any mega-cap company could invest the dollars to get to this developer count, but it is impossible for a smaller studio to make games as immersive and at as quick of a pace as Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. does for its customers. They just don’t have the scale…” (Click here to see the full text)

6. Twitter, Inc. (NYSE:TWTR)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $13,614,000

Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 9.58%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83

Twitter, Inc. (NYSE:TWTR) is a real-time social media network that allows anyone to express themselves publicly. It links users to people, information, ideas, views, and news through a network. On March 1, Benchmark analyst Mark Zgutowicz initiated coverage of Twitter, Inc. with a Hold rating.

On February 24, Twitter, Inc. announced that it issued 5.000% senior notes due March 1, 2030, whose principal amount is $1 billion. The net earnings would be utilized for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures, investments, debt reduction, common stock repurchases, cash flow, potential acquisitions, and significant transactions. 

In the third quarter, 83 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey reported owning stakes in Twitter, Inc., worth $3.13 billion, as compared to 94 funds holding stakes in Twitter, Inc. valued at $6.31 billion in the preceding quarter.

Twitter, Inc. is a notable stock in Robert W. Koehn’s Q4 portfolio, just like Microsoft Corporation, Alphabet Inc., and BlackRock, Inc..

RiverPark Funds mentioned Twitter, Inc. in its third-quarter 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“Twitter: Despite reporting in-line third quarter results, TWTR shares struggled at the end of 2021. For TWTR, the declines could be attributed to a fear of continued headwinds from Apple’s iOS tracking changes, as well as the stock continuing to be a show-me story after posting two disappointing quarters since its investor day in February (prior to this in-line quarter), as well as its recent CEO change (founder Jack Dorsey stepped down and is being succeeded by long-time CTO Parag Agrawal). Investors continue to be concerned with the platform’s user engagement, as total monetizable daily active users (mDAU) grew 13% year over year to 211 million, in-line with expectations, but still below management’s long-term target of 20% growth. Management expects mDAU growth to accelerate, driven by continued economic reopening and new features such as Spaces and Communities and an increase in the number and penetration of Twitter Topics. For the quarter, revenue increased 37% year over year to $1.3 billion and 4Q guidance was strong at about 20% growth, as Twitter has less exposure to Apple’s ATT headwinds.

With $4.8 billion of TTM revenue (only 4% of Facebook’s revenue), the company has a large opportunity to take share in the $200 billion global digital advertising market that continues to flow to mobile, Twitter’s focus. As the company continues to launch and improve its products (including stories, audio chat, podcasting, video and subscriptions), its platform should become more compelling to both users and advertisers, allowing it to take advertising dollar share through increased user engagement and ad pricing. As Twitter showed this year, we believe that the company can generate 20%+ revenue growth while also driving operating leverage in its already highly profitable business model, generating expanding excess free cash flow growth over time (3Q OCF grew 81% year over year).”

5. The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $13,792,000
Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 9.7%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 72

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) is a worldwide financial services firm based in the United States. On February 18, Deutsche Bank analyst Brian Bedell initiated coverage of The Charles Schwab Corporation, rating it as Buy and giving a price target of $121.

The Charles Schwab Corporation declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share on January 26, an increase of 11.1% from the previous payout of $0.18. In the fourth quarter of 2021, Ivy Lane Capital held 164,000 shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation. These were worth $13.79 million and accounted for 9.7% of its portfolio.

John Armitage’s Egerton Capital Limited is the largest stakeholder of The Charles Schwab Corporation in the fourth quarter of 2021, with 14.49 million shares worth $1.22 billion. According to Insider Monkey’s Q4 records, 72 elite funds were bullish on The Charles Schwab Corporation, up from 59 in the previous quarter.

In its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter, Weitz Investment Management mentioned The Charles Schwab Corporation. Here is what Weitz Investment Management said about The Charles Schwab Corporation:

“Financial services firm Charles Schwab took bronze medals for the fourth quarter and calendar year. Brokerage account balances are higher, and investors are anticipating better profit margins for the bank’s lending business in the quarters ahead.”

4. Avalara, Inc. (NYSE:AVLR)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $16,784,000
Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 11.81%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 34

Avalara, Inc. (NYSE:AVLR) is a company that offers cloud-based solutions. Taxability, preparing and filing forms, remitting taxes, identifying appropriate tax rates, calculating and collecting taxes, preserving tax records, and managing compliance papers are all areas of concentration for the company. In the fourth quarter, Robert W. Koehn added 8% to his existing stake in Avalara, Inc., holding a total of 130,000 shares worth $16.78 million. As a result, Avalara, Inc. stock accounts for 11.81% of the hedge fund’s Q4 portfolio.

Canaccord analyst David Hynes decreased his price objective on Avalara, Inc. to $140 from $205 on February 14 and maintained a Buy recommendation on the stock. The model and goal of the analyst have been adjusted to reflect a resetting of sector multiples and the assumption that the new normal for elevated enterprises in the industry would trade in the 10-15x future range.

Of the 924 elite funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 34 were bullish on Avalara, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2021. Panayotis Takis Sparaggis’s Alkeon Capital Management is the leading stakeholder of Avalara, Inc., with a $369.88 million stake.

In its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter Baron Funds, an asset management firm, mentioned Avalara, Inc.. Here is what the fund said:

“Shares of Avalara, Inc., a leading cloud-based provider of transactional tax automation software, detracted from performance. The company reported solid quarterly earnings. Nevertheless, the stock sold off on a combination of a sequential deceleration in organic billings growth (explained mostly by a tough comparison) and the broader weakness in high-growth, high-multiple stocks during the quarter. We maintain conviction in the investment, as Avalara operates in a large market, has strong competitive advantages, and is poised to grow revenue at least 20% for many years, in our view.”

3. BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $19,685,000
Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 13.85%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 49

BlackRock, Inc. is a New York-based American international investment management company. BlackRock, Inc. has approximately 70 offices in more than 30 countries, serving clients in more than 100 countries. BlackRock, Inc. has featured on Ivy Lane Capital’s portfolio since the fourth quarter of 2020. Regulatory filings reveal that the hedge fund owned 21,500 shares of BlackRock, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2021, worth $19.69 million, representing 13.85% of the total portfolio.

On February 23, FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) and BlackRock, Inc. announced a multi-year partnership to provide clients a consistent experience across multi-asset portfolio and risk management, as well as trade execution.

The number of hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey having stakes in BlackRock, Inc. grew to 49 in Q4, from 44 in the preceding quarter. These stakes hold a consolidated value of $1.49 billion, up from $1.09 billion.

Baron Funds mentioned BlackRock, Inc. in its Q1 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“During the quarter, we initiated a position in BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest investment manager with $9 trillion in assets under management. BlackRock offers an array of products across equities, fixed income, alternatives, and cash management to institutional and retail investors worldwide. About one-quarter of BlackRock’s assets under management is actively managed, and the rest is in passive index funds and iShares-branded ETFs. The company offers technology services including the investment and risk management platform, Aladdin, as well as other advisory services and solutions. Over the five years ending December 31, 2020, assets under management and earnings per share grew at compound annual growth rates of 13% and 12%, respectively.

We believe BlackRock is well positioned for continued growth given its diverse product offering, global distribution, brand recognition, and capable management team. With most of its assets in index funds and ETFs, BlackRock is a prime beneficiary of the ongoing shift to passive investing. The company also benefits from increasing demand for sustainable investment strategies and “barbell” strategies that use a combination of low-cost index funds, active and illiquid alternatives products. BlackRock fits squarely within our Tech-Enabled Financials theme given its longstanding commitment to innovation and proprietary technology platform, Aladdin, which serves as the investment and risk management system for both BlackRock and a growing number of institutional investors around the world. We expect BlackRock’s earnings per share will continue to grow at a double digit annual rate over a market cycle through a combination of mid-single-digit growth in assets under management from net inflows, market appreciation, low to mid-teens revenue growth in technology services, modest margin expansion, and share repurchases.”

2. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $28,068,000
Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 19.75%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 158

Alphabet Inc. is a multinational American business that acts as the holding company for Google and other Google subsidiaries as of 2015. In addition, the organization offers various services, including web-based research, software applications, and maps. Alphabet Inc. accounts for about 19.75% of Ivy Lane Capital’s portfolio, as the hedge fund owns a $28.07 million stake in the company.

As of the end of the fourth quarter, 158 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database held stakes in Alphabet Inc., compared to 156 funds in the third quarter. Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, TCI Fund Management is a leading shareholder of Alphabet Inc. with $8.54 billion stake in the firm.

In its Q4 2021 investor letter, Polen Focus Growth mentioned Alphabet Inc.. Here is what the fund said:

“For the full year, the top performers included Alphabet. Alphabet’s business continues to compound at what we believe to be a healthy rate. The company reported a 40% increase in third-quarter revenues year over year and likely earned approximately $70 billion in incremental revenue in 2021.”

1. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Ivy Lane Capital Stake Value: $28,924,000
Percentage of Ivy Lane Capital’s 13F Portfolio: 20.35%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 262

Microsoft Corporation is a software company that creates, produces, licenses, sells, and supports software. According to the 13F filings for the fourth quarter of 2021, Ivy Lane Capital holds 86,000 shares of Microsoft Corporation, amounting to more than $28.92 million in worth and representing 20.35% of the fund’s portfolio value.

Overall, hedge funds are loading up on Microsoft Corporation, as 262 out of the  924 funds tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in the tech behemoth in the fourth quarter of 2021, up from 250 funds a quarter earlier.

Polen Capital, an investment management firm, in its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter mentioned Microsoft Corporation. Here is what the fund said:

“Microsoft remains a beneficiary of accelerated digital tailwinds in a post-pandemic era. The company reported a nearly 22% yearover-year increase in third-quarter revenues. It maintains its momentum as a leading provider of cloud-based productivity solutions across different parts of the technology stack and various applications.”

You can also take a peek at 9 Stocks to Invest In According to Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital and Top 10 Stock Picks of Kenneth A. Moffet’s Hourglass Capital

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This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.