Billion Dollar Hedge Fund Iridian Asset Management Loves These Five Stocks. Should You?

#3 Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE)

Shares held (as of September 30): 11.45 million
Total Value (as of September 30): $536.92 million
Percent of Portfolio (as of September 30): 4.54%

Sealed Air Corp (NYSE:SEE) shares have done well in 2015, with the stock up by a respectable 14.32% year-to-date. Despite the currency headwinds and emerging market softness, the company has beaten earnings estimates every quarter this year, with the company reporting EPS of $0.70 on revenues of $1.75 billion for its third quarter. The EPS beat estimates by $0.13 per share, while the revenue was in-line. The stock trades at a reasonable 18.4-times forward P/E. Andreas Halvorsen‘s Viking Global was long 12.82 million shares of Sealed Air Corp at the end of June.

#2 W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA)

Shares held (as of September 30): 6.34 million
Total Value (as of September 30): $589.78 million
Percent of Portfolio (as of September 30): 4.99%

Financial analysts are optimistic on W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA), as one analyst has a ‘Strong Buy’ rating, five have a ‘Buy’ rating, and three have a ‘Hold’ rating. Overall, analysts have a consensus price target of $115.50 per share, indicating 16.71% upside. Hedge funds are bullish too, as 45 funds out of the 730 elite funds that we track reported a cumulative stake in W. R. Grace & Co (NYSE:GRA) shares worth $3.29 billion as of the end of the second quarter. The funds’ positions accounted for 45.10% of the stock’s float on June 30, with John Griffin‘s Blue Ridge Capital owning a stake of 3.19 million shares.

#1 Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Shares held (as of September 30): 13.45 million
Total Value (as of September 30): $603.3 million
Percent of Portfolio (as of September 30): 5.10%

More than a year after its sharp decline, Brent is still below $50 per barrel. For airlines such as Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL), the low Brent price is welcome news, as analysts estimate that around half of the fuel cost benefit is going straight to Delta’s EBIT (consumers are winning too, with cheaper travel costs). Shares are up by 5% year-to-date and will continue to do well as long as oil prices stay low and the economy continues to improve. Delta Airlines was a popular holding with the smart money, as 114 funds were long Delta at the end of the second quarter.

Disclosure: None