In this article, we discuss the top 5 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. If you want to read our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to Billionaire Englander’s Top 10 Stock Picks.
5. Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 266
Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) is ranked fifth on our list of top 10 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. The firm operates as a technology company and is headquartered in California. 13F filings reveal that Millennium Management owned 1.6 million shares in the company at the end of the second quarter of 2021 worth $571 million, representing 0.35% of the portfolio.
On September 30, investment advisory RBC Capital initiated coverage of Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) stock with an Outperform rating and a price target of $425, noting the firm was positioned to “transition from a social-centric platform to a fuller source of online utility”.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 266 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $42 billion in Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB), up from 257 in the preceding quarter worth $40 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“We continued to keep our learnings from 2020 in mind during the quarter as we sought to increase the up capture of the portfolio. We also made adjustments to the portfolio’s top 10 holdings to increase the participation of select stocks, including Facebook, while trimming our weighting to stable names, which now represent 47% of the portfolio. Our repositioning has been encouraging so far with the portfolio performing better on up days in the market while maintaining good down capture during more turbulent sessions.”
4. Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 146
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) is a China-based firm that provides technology infrastructure and internet-related services. It is placed fourth on our list of top 10 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. Government filings show that Millennium Management owned 3.7 million shares in the company at the end of June 2021 worth $776 million, representing 0.46% of the portfolio.
On October 1, investment advisory KeyBanc maintained an Overweight rating on Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) stock but lowered the price target to $200 from $250. Hans Chung, an analyst at the advisory, issued the ratings update.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) with 14 million shares worth more than $3.2 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Polen Capital Management, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Alibaba also detracted from performance as the company continues to remain under regulatory scrutiny from both the Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation on antitrust concerns and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on ADR listing requirements. Despite the regulatory overhang, we believe that Alibaba’s competitive positioning and growth outlook remains intact, even if the company must pay fines or modify some business practices. We viewed the current valuation at <20x next twelve month’s earnings as a compelling opportunity to add to our position. Alibaba is the second largest position in the Portfolio.”
3. Linde plc (NYSE:LIN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 55
Linde plc (NYSE:LIN) is a United Kingdom-based industrial gas company. It is ranked third on our list of top 10 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. Latest data shows that Millennium Management owned 2.6 million shares in the company at the end of the second quarter of 2021 worth $770 million, representing 0.47% of the portfolio.
On September 17, investment advisory Societe Generale kept a Buy rating on Linde plc (NYSE:LIN) and raised the price target to $365 from $350, noting the firm remained a top pick in the sector after outperforming peers in the second quarter.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 55 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $5.9 billion in Linde plc (NYSE:LIN), up from 43 the preceding quarter worth $4.6 billion.
2. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 138
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is placed second on our list of top 10 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. The firm operates as a technology company and is headquartered in California. According to securities filings, Millennium Management owned 6.9 million shares in the company at the end of June 2021 worth $995 million, representing 0.58% of the portfolio.
On September 29, investment advisory UBS maintained a Buy rating on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock with a price target of $175. David Vogt, an analyst at the advisory, issued the ratings update.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 138 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $145 billion in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), up from 127 in the preceding quarter worth $131 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Distillate Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Apple is an even more notable situation and one that highlights our free cash valuation methodology and bears further discussion given its Q3 ‘20 sale from our strategy. For an extended period, Apple was extraordinarily inexpensive on a free cash flow basis and was the largest position in our strategy, exceeding 5% of the portfolio.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 271
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is ranked first on our list of top 10 stock picks of billionaire Israel Englander. The firm operates as a diversified technology firm and is headquartered in Washington. According to the latest filings, Millennium Management owned 338,263 shares in the company at the end of the second quarter of 2021 worth $1.1 billion, representing 0.71% of the portfolio.
On September 30 investment advisory RBC Capital initiated coverage of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) stock with an Outperform rating and a price target of $4,150, noting the firm was a “favorite” among internet picks.
Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Chicago-based investment firm Citadel Investment Group is a leading shareholder in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) with 3.8 million shares worth more than $13 billion.
In its Q1 2021 investor letter, Hayden Capital, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Amazon (AMZN):We sold our last remaining stake in Amazon this quarter. Amazon was our longest-running investment holding, after having originally purchasing it at the inception of Hayden in 2014, at a price of ~$317.
I gave some details of how Amazon has progressed over these past 6.5 years in last year’s Q2 2020 letter, which partners can find here (LINK). The company has executed amazingly well over this tenure, with revenues up ~3.3x and since our initial purchase, and reported operating income up ~30x over that period.
Generally, I believe there are three reasons to sell an investment:1) we recognize our initial thesis is wrong (sell out as quick as possible), 2) we have a significantly higher returning opportunity to redeploy the capital into (sell-down to fund the new investment), or 3) the company is maturing and hitting the top part of it’s S-curve / business lifecycle, so the business has fewer places to reinvest its capital internally. As such, the future returns will likely be lower than the past. This investment thus becomes a “source of capital” in the future, as we fund earlier-stage investment opportunities.
In the case of Amazon, we decided to sell due to the third scenario. I’m sure Amazon will continue to generate value for shareholders and continue to keep pace with the broader technology sector. However, I’m just not confident it’s as attractive an investment as when we first invested.
With ~51% of US households having an Amazon Prime account (and with very low churn), each of these households continuing to increase their annual spend with Amazon, and few / no real competitors in sight, Amazon is a dominant force that will only continue to accrue value as consumers continue to move from offline to online purchases for their everyday needs. Likewise, the “cash-flow machine” of Amazon Web Services is in a similar position of strength, with AWS now having ~32% market share and continuing to grow at +30% y/y. Because of this, I think Amazon is probably one of the safest investments in the technology sector today.
So why did we decide to sell the investment then? Simply put, Amazon is …”read the entire letter here]
You can also take a peek at 10 Best Healthcare Dividend Stocks to Buy Now and 10 Dividend Stocks with Over 20 Years of Dividend Increases.
