Bill Ackman’s Biggest Q3 Moves As He Seeks Elusive Turnaround

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)

– Shares Owned by Pershing Square (as of September 30): 2.88 million

– Value of Pershing Square’s Holding (as of September 30): $1.2 billion

Bill Ackman’s hedge fund Pershing Square surprised the Street in September by disclosing a $1.2 billion stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG). The new position accounts for a whopping 9.9% of the company’s total float. Ackman believes that the food chain has a “differentiated offering” and growth opportunities. The billionaire is of the view that Chipotle’s stock is undervalued and some media reports suggest that Ackman is for to a management/board change in Chipotle. Recently, the company was reported to have hired experts to fend off hostile moves from activist investors.  A total of 41 hedge funds in our database held stakes in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG), as of the end of the third quarter.

Zoetis Inc (NYSE:ZTS)

– Shares Owned by Pershing Square (as of September 30):0

– Value of Pershing Square’s Holding (as of September 30):$0

Pershing has sold all 2.72 million Zoetis Inc (NYSE:ZTS) shares it had at the end of the third quarter. In its third quarter call to the investors, Pershing said Zoetis is a “great” company and has no element of aggressive politics. At the end of the second quarter, Bill Ackman’s hedge fund had a $1 billion stake in the New Jersey-based pets and livestock medicine company. The stock is up by over 3% so far this year. In the third quarter, Zoetis (NYSE: ZTS) earned $0.48 per share on $1.2 billion revenue, better than the estimates of $0.47 EPS and $1.22 billion revenue. 44 hedge funds in our system were long Zoetis Inc (NYSE:ZTS) at the end of September.

Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (USA) (NYSE:CP)

– Shares Owned by Pershing Square (as of September 30):0

– Value of Pershing Square’s Holding (as of September 30):$0

Pershing Square also unloaded all of its stake in Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (USA) (NYSE:CP) in the third quarter, selling over 9.84 million shares of the company. Canadian Pacific is facing a decline in revenues amid the slump in commodity prices. The company reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of C$2.73 ($2.02) a share, missing the forecasts of C$2.79 a share. Revenue fell 9% to C$1.55 billion from C$1.71 billion in the period, missing the consensus estimate of C$1.62 billion. John Armitage’s Egerton Capital Limited owned over 2.48 million shares of Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (USA) (NYSE:CP), as of the end of the third quarter. Despite Ackman’s sale Canadian Pacific stock is up 22% year-to-date.

Disclosure: None