First Eagle Investment Management LLC, currently overseen by President and Chief Executive Officer Mehdi Mahmud, is an independent asset management firm that oversees roughly $94 billion in assets under management as of March 31. The 152-year-old company focuses on fundamental, flexible and benchmark-agnostic investing, as well as employs strategies that offer downside protection for investors. The New York-based asset manager had an equity portfolio worth $39.34 billion at the end of the March quarter, down from the $40.00 billion figure registered at the end of the final quarter of 2015. First Eagle Investment Management strongly values its legacy as a patient, thoughtful, long-term investor; therefore, retail investors could benefit from having a look at the firm’s top equity positions and major moves made each quarter. Thus, this article will lay out and discuss the five largest equity positions within First Eagle’s equity portfolio as of the end of March.
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#5. Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC)
– Number of shares held by First Eagle as of March 31: 12.72 Million
– Value of First Eagle’s holding as of March 31: $1.06 Billion
First Eagle upped its position in Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) by 119,010 shares during the March quarter, ending the first three-month period of 2016 with 12.72 million shares valued at $1.06 billion. The New York-based asset manager initiated a position in the provider of advertising, marketing and corporate communications services during the fourth quarter of 2008; an investment that has returned 224% since the end of 2008. Omnicom shares aren’t doing too badly this year either as they are nearly 11% in the green year-to-date. Earlier this month, Omnicom Health Group, a healthcare marketing and communications group that is part of Omnicom Group, sealed an agreement to acquire BioPharm Communications. The target operates as a communications agency specialized in proprietary, multichannel marketing programs for pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients, serving 17 of the 25 largest pharmaceutical companies across the globe. Richard S. Pzena’s Pzena Investment Management owns 4.66 million shares of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) as of March 31.
