Standout Earnings Lifted HEICO (HEI) in Q1

Weitz Investment Management, an investment management firm, released its “Multi-Cap Equity Fund” first-quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here.  The fund’s Institutional Class returned +0.81% in the first quarter compared to -4.72% for the Russell 3000. In late January, the “AI Trade” faced a challenge when the Chinese company DeepSeek revealed that it had created an advanced AI model significantly lower cost than its U.S. counterparts. This announcement resulted in increased scrutiny from investors regarding the spending strategies of US firms. Investors’ and corporate leaders’ confidence is challenged by uncertainties related to trade and tariffs, which causes equities to decline as the quarter draws to a close. In addition, you can check the fund’s top 5 holdings to find out its best picks for 2025.

In its first-quarter 2025 investor letter, Weitz Multi-Cap Equity Fund highlighted stocks such as HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI). HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI-A) engages in the design and manufacturing of aerospace, defense, and electronic-related products and services. The one-month return of HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) was 8.96%, and its shares gained 23.35% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On May 23, 2025, HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) stock closed at $268.05 per share with a market capitalization of $32.496 billion.

Weitz Multi-Cap Equity Fund stated the following regarding HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) in its Q1 2025 investor letter:

“Aerospace parts and services provider HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) delivered standout earnings, featuring stronger-than-expected growth in both of its segments. HEICO’s value proposition of saving customers money by adopting their cost-effective, alternative parts remains as relevant as ever, and we believe it will drive growth into the future.”

Is HEICO Corporation (HEI) The Most Crowded Hedge Fund Stock That is Targeted by Short Sellers?

A fighter jet in formation, revealing the prowess of the companies defense arm.

HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 65 hedge fund portfolios held HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) at the end of the first quarter which was 67 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the undervalued AI stock set for massive gains.

In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.