Baron Asset Fund: “Veeva (VEEV) Remains Well Positioned From Digitalization”

Baron Funds, an investment management firm, published its fourth quarter 2020 “Baron Asset Fund” investor letter – a copy of which can be downloaded here. A return of 15.14% was recorded by its Retail Shares, and 15.21% by its Institutional Shares in the fourth quarter of 2020, both below its Russell Midcap Growth Benchmark that delivered a 19.02% return but above its S&P 500 index that was up by 12.15% in the same period. You can view the fund’s top 5 holdings to have a peek at their top bets for 2021.

Baron Funds, in their Q4 2020 investor letter, mentioned Veeva Systems Inc. (NYSE: VEEV) and emphasized their views on the company. Veeva Systems Inc. is a Pleasanton, California-based computer software company that currently has a $40.3 billion market capitalization. Since the beginning of the year, VEEV delivered a -2.12% return, impressively extending its 12-month gains to 83.87%. As of March 22, 2021, the stock closed at $267.27 per share.

Here is what Baron Funds has to say about Veeva Systems Inc. in their Q4 2020 investor letter:

“Veeva Systems Inc. offers cloud-based software solutions for the life sciences industry. Its shares lagged during the quarter. Despite strong third quarter results, management offered a more cautious 2021 outlook, suggesting some headwinds to its commercial business. A new Presidential administration also caused some uncertainty about the regulatory environment for its key end-markets. We believe Veeva remains well positioned to benefit from the life science industry’s ongoing digitalization initiatives.”

Our calculations show that Veeva Systems Inc. (NYSE: VEEV) does not belong in our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As of the end of the fourth quarter of 2020, Veeva Systems Inc. was in 36 hedge fund portfolios, compared to 38 funds in the third quarter. VEEV delivered a -7.13% return in the past 3 months.