Baron Asset Remains Hopeful in Equinix (EQIX) Despite its Weak Performance

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 Equinix, Inc. (REIT) (NASDAQ: EQIX) and emphasized their views on the company. Equinix, Inc. is a Redwood City, California-based real estate investment trust company that currently has a $59.96 billion market capitalization. Since the beginning of the year, EQIX delivered a -7.01% return, while its 12-month gains are still up by 21.66%. As of March 22, 2021, the stock closed at $666.69 per share.

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

“Equinix, Inc. is a REIT that operates network-dense, carrier-neutral colocation data centers spanning the globe. After strong performance earlier in the year, Equinix, like SBA Communications Corp., was negatively impacted by investors’ shift toward “laggards” and increased interest rates. We remain optimistic about the company benefiting from cloud adoption and IT outsourcing, its unique position as one of the only operators that can offer a global platform, and continued execution on strategic M&A transactions to enhance its moat.”

Our calculations show that Equinix, Inc. (REIT) (NASDAQ: EQIX) 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, Equinix, Inc. was in 42 hedge fund portfolios. EQIX delivered a -7.23% return in the past 3 months.