Leucadia National Corp. (LUK), Hartford Financial Services Group Inc (HIG): Here’s What Fairholme’s Bruce Berkowitz Has Been Buying

Fairholme Capital Management reduced its stake in lots of companies, including Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK) and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A). Chesapeake is finally under new management, and has been shedding assets to help it pay down debt while also aiming to boost production. (The new management is also shedding some old management.) It’s poised to profit from rising natural gas prices. And some big investors, such as Carl Icahn, are bullish on it. Icahn recently boosted his stake in the company to 10%. Icahn is an activist investor who often agitates for changes at companies, including at Chesapeake.

About a dozen of the portfolio’s holdings were left essentially unchanged. These include Leucadia National Corp. (NYSE:LUK), which recently merged with Jefferies Group. In June, Jefferies reported a 27% drop in fixed-income trading revenue, reflecting a lackluster bond market. Still, Leucadia has its fans, who like its valuation, among other things. (The stock’s forward P/E was recently below 6.) The company’s second quarter featured revenue up 55%.

Finally, Fairholme’s biggest closed positions included MBIA Inc. (NYSE:MBI) and Canadian Natural Resource Ltd (USA) (NYSE:CNQ). MBIA has an even lower forward P/E than Leucadia National Corp. (NYSE:LUK), recently at 3.4, and has been enjoying some lucrative time spent in courtrooms, such as with a court decision against Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC). MBIA has some exposure to Detroit’s debt, though, and some see it not resuming former growth rates despite its improving condition. The company’s second quarter featured a net loss, vs. a net profit a year ago.

We should never blindly copy any investor’s moves, no matter how talented the investor. But it can be useful to keep an eye on what smart folks are doing. 13-F forms can be great places to find intriguing candidates for our portfolios.

The article Here’s What Fairholme’s Bruce Berkowitz Has Been Buying originally appeared on Fool.com.

Longtime Fool contributor Selena Maranjian, whom you can follow on Twitter, owns shares of Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of American International Group, Bank of America, and Berkshire Hathaway and has the following options: long January 2014 $25 calls on American International Group and long January 2014 $30 calls on Chesapeake Energy. 

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