Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller’s New Bets On Basic Materials

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The latest round of 13F filings has brought to light some interesting changes in the portfolio of hedge fund legend Stanley Druckenmiller. His fund, Duquesne Capital, now has enhanced exposure to basic materials stocks, with financial and tech stocks coming right behind. A former portfolio manager for George Soros’ Quantum Fund (now Soros Fund Management), Druckenmiller is famous for “breaking the Bank of England” in 1992, when he had massively shorted the British Pound. He founded Duquesne Capital back in 1981 and, following his departure from Quantum in 2000, has focused solely on managing his fund. In 2010, Druckenmiller closed Duquesne Capital to new investors, claiming he’d be unable to provide high returns. He continues to file 13F reports, though, and his latest moves in several basic materials stocks will be discussed below.

DUQUESNE CAPITAL

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Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) is one of Druckenmiller’s top new additions to his fund’s equity portfolio. According to Duquesne’s latest 13F filing, throughout the second quarter Druckenmiller built a position that comprises 3.54 million shares, which are valued at a little over $66 million as of June 30. The stock took a hammering in the first half of this year, having lost more than 60% of its value, and is currently trading at $8.78 per share. For the three months ending June 30, Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) reported revenues of $4.25 billion and a loss of $0.09 per share. Market analysts expect better results for the current quarter, eyeing revenues of $4.26 billion and earnings per share of $0.10. Ken Griffin and Mario Gabelli are also bullish on this stock, having increased their holdings during the quarter. Griffin’s stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) rose by 19% to 2.72 million shares valued at $50.8 million, while Gabelli boosted his stake to 2.73 million shares worth $50.9 million, according to their respective quarterly filings.

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