In this article, we discuss the top 10 stock picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of Mignone’s history, investment philosophy, and hedge fund performance, go directly to Top 5 Stock Picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management.
Roberto Mignone established Bridger Management, a hedge fund with offices in New York City, in July 2000. Before launching Bridger Management, Mignone and John Griffin co-founded Blue Ridge Capital in 1996. He had also worked for Tiger Management, a well-known “Tiger Cub” hedge fund established by Julian Robertson, just like Griffin had. He graduated from Harvard University and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.
A management fee of 1.5% and an incentive fee of 20% are levied by Mignone. He doesn’t want to manage a fund that is significantly larger than the one he is now managing since he feels that fund size has a negative impact on a long/short fund manager’s performance. The 40 or so long holdings that make up the hedge fund’s core positions are all initially constrained to five percent of the portfolio and never rise over ten percent. Bridger Management is very secretive about its earnings. They employ a long/short strategy and conduct an in-depth investigation.
Since its establishment, Bridger Management has concentrated on the healthcare industry and built a sizable body of research knowledge to support its investments. Bridger Management also invests in communications, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, industrials, technology, and financial services firms. At the end of the first quarter of 2022, Bridger Management’s 13F portfolio reached $609.73 million, a decrease of about 21% from the preceding quarter. The hedge fund added 14 stocks to its portfolio and sold 6 equities. The hedge fund also increased its stakes in 7 securities and decreased its hold on 6 stocks. Some of the most notable securities in Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management portfolio included Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN).
Roberto Mignone’s portfolio includes Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), the holding company for Google. On June 2, Piper Sandler analyst Thomas Champion maintained an Overweight rating on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) and decreased his price target to $2,775 from $2,900. In the internet industry, Champion lowered forecasts generally.
Another notable stock in the Bridger Management portfolio is Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META). The investor owns a $1.06 million stake in the company. On June 22, BofA analyst Justin Post maintained a Buy rating and a $233 price target on Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META).
In Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Roberto Mignone owns 652 shares. Zscaler, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZS) announced an expansion of its collaboration with Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) Web Services on June 22. Amazon Web Services and Zscaler’s Zero Trust architecture will be used to create breakthroughs that will help businesses move faster and more securely to the cloud.
Our Methodology
With this background in mind, let’s start our list of top 10 stock picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management. We chose these stocks from the Q1 portfolio of Mignone’s hedge fund. The popularity of each company among hedge funds was determined using an extensive database of 912 elite hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in the first quarter of 2022.
Top Stock Picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management
10. VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN)
Bridger Management’s Stake Value: $27,210,000
Percentage of Bridger Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.46%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 41
VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) provides domain name registrar services and internet infrastructure worldwide. In the first quarter, Bridger Management sold 36,400 shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN), reducing its stake by about 23%. At the end of the quarter, the hedge fund still held 122,314 shares of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN), worth about $27.21 million.
On April 29, Baird analyst Rob Oliver downgraded VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) from Outperform to Neutral and slashed his price objective from $260 to $210. Due to a lowered domain forecast, a decline in demand following the COVID-related growth, and a further macroeconomic downturn, Oliver advised investors in a research note that VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN) has cut its fiscal 2022 estimates.
Out of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in the first quarter of 2022, 41 held stakes in VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN), with a combined value of $5.38 billion. Of these 41 funds, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway was the most significant shareholder of VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN), with 12.82million shares worth $2.85 billion.
Along with VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) are also some of the notable picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management.
In its Q4 2021 investor letter, Baron Funds mentioned Verisign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN). Here is what the fund said:
“Verisign, Inc. provides internet infrastructure services worldwide and is best known for its exclusive role managing the .com and .net domains, for which it receives annual fees from all those domain owners. Shares of Verisign gained after reporting strong revenue growth and operating margins that exceeded Wall Street forecasts. We continue to be positive on Verisign’s business, based on its strong competitive position, capacity for global growth in domain names, and its ongoing ability to generate substantial free cash flow.”
9. Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)
Bridger Management’s Stake Value: $27,877,000
Percentage of Bridger Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.57%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 44
Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) manages retail off-price clothes and home accessories stores. BlueSpruce Investments was the leading shareholder of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the first quarter of 2022, with 3.82 million shares worth $345.55 million.
On May 23, Adrienne Yih, a Barclays analyst, reiterated an Overweight rating on Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) and cut her price objective from $119 to $85. In a research note, Yih advised investors that Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) had a dismal Q1 with bad sales, margin, and profitability. According to Insider Monkey’s data, 44 hedge funds were bullish on Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) at the end of Q1 of 2022, compared to 39 funds in the earlier quarter.
Bridger Management cut its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 40,500 shares in the first quarter, reducing its total stake size by 12%. The hedge fund first invested in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) in the third quarter of 2020. However, Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management still holds 308,168 shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST), worth more than $27.88 million.
8. Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC)
Bridger Management’s Stake Value: $28,021,000
Percentage of Bridger Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.59%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 24
Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC) creates, produces, and sells goods for treating eye conditions and illnesses, including surgical tools, eye drops, and consumer vision care items. Christoph Gretler, an analyst at Credit Suisse, initiated coverage of Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC) on May 12 and assigned it an Outperform rating and a $96 price target.
24 hedge funds were long Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC) at the close of the first quarter, up from 21 in the preceding quarter. The total value of Q1 hedge fund holdings stood at $980.27 million. Ako Capital, with 5.35 million shares worth $426.08 million, was the largest shareholder of Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC) in the first quarter of 2022.
Roberto Mignone loaded up on Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC) in the first quarter of 2022, increasing his hold on the company by 29%. Bridger Management owned 353,215 shares of Alcon Inc. (NYSE:ALC), worth $28.02 million.
7. Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR)
Bridger Management’s Stake Value: $28,727,000
Percentage of Bridger Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.71%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 73
Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) provides broadband communications services. According to Insider Monkey’s first-quarter database, 73 hedge funds were bullish on Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), with collective stakes worth over $8.52 billion, compared to the same number of funds in the earlier quarter, holding stakes in the company valued at $16.59 billion.
RBC Capital analyst Kutgun Maral maintained an Outperform rating on Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) on June 17 but decreased his price objective from $700 to $575. The analyst revised his forecasts after learning from management about the departure of its broadband subscribers who had been dropped from FCC-funded programmes. Maral cautioned investors in a research note that it is unlikely that shares will re-rate higher until the forecast for the broadband sub improves, despite the stock’s attractive current price.
Natixis Global Asset Management’s Harris Associates is the largest shareholder of Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), with a $2.25 billion stake in the firm. Next on the list is Berkshire Hathaway, which owned 3.83 million shares of the company, equaling $2.09 billion.
In the first quarter of 2022, Bridger Management held 52,659 shares in Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), worth over $28.73 million, representing 4.71% of its portfolio.
ClearBridge Investments mentioned Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) in its Q1 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“We also added to Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR), a historically strong performer that has faced headwinds recently due to a deceleration in broadband subscriber growth following a period of robust results during the pandemic.”
6. Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC)
Bridger Management’s Stake Value: $29,601,000
Percentage of Bridger Management’s 13F Portfolio: 4.85%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 60
Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) offers services and programs to publicly funded healthcare initiatives in its capacity as a healthcare organization. Following Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC)’s virtual investor event on June 22, Deutsche Bank analyst George Hill increased his price objective for Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) to $91 from $88 and reiterated a Buy rating on the shares.
According to the 13F filings for the first quarter of 2022, Bridger Management held 351,600 shares of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC), amounting to more than $29.60 million and representing 4.85% of the fund’s portfolio. The hedge fund trimmed its stake in Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) by 17%.
Investors realize the value of holding Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC), as 60 hedge funds were bullish on the company shares in the first quarter, as compared to 53 hedge funds in Q4 2021. Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global is the most significant shareholder of Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC), with 7.81 million shares valued at $657.20 million during the first quarter.
Just like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) is a notable stock from Bridger Management’s Q1 portfolio.
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Disclosure: None. Top 10 Stock Picks of Roberto Mignone’s Bridger Management is originally published on Insider Monkey.
