Warren Buffett is Buying and Holding These 5 Financial Stocks in 2022

3. StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35

StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) is a financial technology provider in Brazil, facilitating digital payments for businesses and merchants. Warren Buffet has held a StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) stake since Q4 2018. In the first quarter of 2022, the billionaire owned 10.6 million shares of the company, worth $125.1 million. 

Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Josh Siegler on April 8 initiated coverage of StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) with an Overweight rating and a $15 price target. While the analyst believes Brazilian inflation will remain elevated in 2022, he thinks that StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) stock has overcorrected, and feels the market may be discounting the company’s ability to control the expense impact through higher prepayment fees.

According to Insider Monkey’s data, D E Shaw held a prominent position in StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) in the first quarter of 2022, with 5.4 million shares worth $64.2 million. In Q4 2021, 35 hedge funds were long StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE), with collective stakes valued at $829.5 million. 

Here is what ClearBridge Investments Global Growth Strategy has to say about StoneCo Ltd. (NASDAQ:STNE) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:

“We also sold and trimmed several names in the emerging market and emerging growth areas, to manage risk and pursue growth companies with a better long-term risk/reward. These included Brazilian payments provider StoneCo. Having expected a rebound in their performance post a profit warning earlier in the year, rising interest rates in Brazil and investments in newly acquired companies increased operating costs and depressed earnings.”