We recently published a list of Billionaire David Tepper’s Top 10 Stock Picks. In this article, we are going to take a look at where JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) stands against other billionaire David Tepper’s top stock picks.
David Alan Tepper, born on September 11, 1957, is an American billionaire hedge fund manager, businessman, and sports team owner. He is the founder and president of Appaloosa Management, a global hedge fund based in Miami Beach, Florida. Beyond finance, Tepper owns the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL) and Charlotte FC of Major League Soccer (MLS). Tepper grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, earning a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Pittsburgh in 1978. He later pursued a Master of Science in Industrial Administration (MSIA) from Carnegie Mellon University in 1982. His connection to the university remained strong, culminating in a $67 million donation in 2013, after which the Tepper School of Business was named in his honor.
Over his career, Tepper has accumulated numerous accolades, cementing his status as one of the most successful hedge fund managers in the world. In 2018, he secured third place on Forbes’ list of the highest-earning hedge fund managers with $1.5 billion in annual earnings. He was repeatedly listed among Forbes’ top 25 highest-earning hedge fund managers in 2013 and 2016. A 2010 New York magazine profile described Tepper as the object of “hero worship” within the financial industry, where one investor famously referred to him as “a golden god.” His aggressive and unfiltered approach earned him a unique reputation, with plans to eventually convert his hedge fund into a family office.
Outside of finance and sports ownership, Tepper’s career includes a series of formative positions that shaped his reputation and investment philosophy. After earning his economics degree, he worked as a credit analyst at Equibank in Pittsburgh before enrolling at Carnegie Mellon. Post-MBA, he joined Republic Steel’s treasury department in Ohio and then moved to Keystone Mutual Funds in Boston. In 1985, Goldman Sachs recruited him for its newly formed high-yield credit group in New York City. Tepper quickly rose to head trader within six months, playing a crucial role in the firm’s recovery after the 1987 stock market crash by purchasing bonds from weakened financial institutions. Known for his blunt market commentary, he advised against fear-driven investment decisions during economic turbulence, famously dismissing extreme market predictions and championing the adaptability of markets and people alike.
Appaloosa Management, founded by Tepper in early 1993 after leaving Goldman Sachs, has become synonymous with high-stakes investing in distressed companies and volatile markets. Based initially in Chatham, New Jersey, the firm was established as an employee-owned investment management company with a sharp focus on distressed debt. From its inception, Appaloosa Management has specialized in investing across public equity and fixed income markets on a global scale. The firm built a reputation for its bold, contrarian investment strategy, particularly in volatile and high-risk sectors.
Appaloosa Management quickly gained recognition, generating a 61% return in 2001 through distressed bond investments, and in 2005, pivoted to lucrative opportunities in S&P stocks. Tepper’s hedge fund became known for profiting from “dicier” companies, with notable gains from MCI, Mirant, Conseco, and Marconi. In 2009, Appaloosa made about $7 billion by purchasing distressed financial stocks like Bank of America at just $3 per share during the market crash, with $4 billion going directly to Tepper’s personal wealth, making him the top-earning hedge fund manager that year.
Throughout the 1990s, Appaloosa Management earned recognition as a niche junk bond investment boutique, distinguishing itself by targeting undervalued, distressed corporate debt that other investors tended to avoid. As the hedge fund industry evolved in the 2000s, so did Appaloosa’s role and reputation, becoming widely regarded as one of the premier hedge funds in the world, known for its aggressive, high-reward investment tactics. Its core strategy continued to focus on distressed securities, but it also expanded its portfolio to include opportunities in equities and other financial instruments, consistently generating strong returns through bold market bets.
As of its most recent 13F filing for the fourth quarter of 2024, Appaloosa Management’s top ten holdings account for 66.75% of this portfolio, which reflects the firm’s high-conviction, opportunistic investment strategy, a hallmark of David Tepper’s approach.
Our Methodology
We searched through Appaloosa Management’s Q4 2024 13F filings to identify the top stocks in its portfolio. The resultant stocks are then compiled in the ascending order of the fund’s stake in them as of December 31, 2024. To assist readers with more context, we have included hedge fund sentiment regarding each stock using data from 1009 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
A wide and imposing view of a supply chain distribution center, illustrating the company’s technology capabilities.
JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders as of Q4: 78
Appaloosa Management’s Equity Stake: $362.85 Million
JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) is a Beijing-based Chinese e-commerce giant and the country’s largest retailer by revenue. Renowned for its technology-driven business model, JD.com has built a diverse portfolio extending beyond traditional e-commerce into sectors such as logistics, healthcare, and property development. The company has consistently reinforced its market position through innovation and expansion into high-growth areas that complement its core retail operations.
On March 6, 2025, JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and the full year ended December 31, 2024, showcasing notable year-over-year growth. Net revenues for the fourth quarter of 2024 reached RMB347.0 billion (US$147.5 billion), marking a 13.4% increase from the same period in 2023. For the full year, net revenues totaled RMB1,158.8 billion (US$158.8 billion), reflecting a 6.8% rise compared to the prior year. The company’s profitability also saw significant improvements. Income from operations surged to RMB8.5 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the fourth quarter, a substantial increase from RMB2.0 billion in Q4 2023, with the operating margin improving from 0.7% to 2.4% over the same period. On a non-GAAP basis, income from operations rose to RMB10.5 billion (US$1.4 billion), with a corresponding non-GAAP operating margin of 3.0%, up from 2.5% in the previous year.
For the entire year of 2024, JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) reported income from operations of RMB38.7 billion (US$5.3 billion), a marked improvement from RMB26.0 billion in 2023, with its operating margin climbing to 3.3% from 2.4%. Additionally, the company’s net income attributable to ordinary shareholders was RMB9.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) for the fourth quarter, almost tripling from RMB3.4 billion in the same period of the prior year.
As a further demonstration of its strong financial performance and commitment to returning value to shareholders JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD)’s board of directors approved an annual cash dividend of US$0.5 per ordinary share, or US$1.0 per American Depositary Share (ADS), for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, which is scheduled to be paid on or around April 23, 2025, for ordinary shares and April 29, 2025, for ADS holders, with all payments made in U.S. dollars.
Ariel Global Fund stated the following regarding JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“China-based E-commerce company, JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) also detracted from performance over the quarter. The stock came under pressure as some investors took profits on solid earnings performance, while others became concerned with the implications tariffs could have on the Chinese economy. In our view, this share price action runs counter to the company’s solid business fundamentals. The home appliance trade-in program and popular shopping event, Singles’ Day, generated significant consumer spending across various product categories. Additionally, the company’s strategic decision to diversify general merchandise product offerings, expand its third-party marketplace business and monetize advertising streams continues to aid the top- and bottom-lines. Despite the near-term noise, we continue to view the company’s strategic positioning favorably and like JD.com’s long-term growth prospects.”
Overall, JD ranks 6th on our list of billionaire David Tepper’s top stock picks. While we acknowledge the potential of these stock picks, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than JD but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.