Loomis Sayles, an investment management company, released its “Global Growth Fund” investor letter for the first quarter of 2026. A copy of the letter is available to download here. The fund reported -13.09% in the first quarter, lagging the MSCI ACWI Index Net’s -3.20% return. Stock selection in the financials and information technology sectors contributed positively to relative performance. The Firm maintained a long-term investment strategy, concentrating on high-quality businesses with sustainable competitive advantages and profitable growth when available at discounts to intrinsic value. Please review the Fund’s top five holdings to gain insights into their key selections for 2026.
In its first-quarter 2026 investor letter, Loomis Sayles Global Growth Fund highlighted Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) as a leading contributor. Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) is a leading Brazilian beverage company that engages in the production, distribution, and sale of beer, draft beer, soft drinks, malt and food, and other beverages. On May 20, 2026, Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) closed at $3.23 per share. One-month return of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) was 9.86%, and its shares gained 28.69% over the past 52 weeks. Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) has a market capitalization of $50.3 billion.
Loomis Sayles Global Growth Fund stated the following regarding Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:
“Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) is the leading beer brewer and distributor in South America and among the five largest brewers globally. Operating in 18 countries throughout South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, as well as in Canada, Ambev is the market share leader in its three largest markets, including its home market of Brazil, the third-largest market for beer consumption after the US and China. The company owns a number of leading local beer brands, including Skol and Brahma in Brazil and Labatt in Canada, and its access to the brand portfolio of majority-owner Anheuser-Busch Inbev (ABI) gives Ambev a rich portfolio of premium imports as well. The company’s scale in manufacturing and distribution enable it to serve as the exclusive bottler and distributor of Pepsi products in Brazil and other Latin American countries.
A fund holding since the third quarter of 2017, Ambev reported quarterly financial results that reflected solid execution under difficult market conditions. The company reported that revenue rose 5% over the prior-year quarter, despite weakness in the company’s two largest markets, Brazil and Argentina. In Brazil, unfavorable weather impacted results industry wide. Ambev, due to its long-term focus, continues to invest in innovation in both its products and business model in advance of peers. The company continues to gain market share in the faster growing premium and super-premium categories which in Brazil grew by a mid-teens percentage while overall beer volumes declined during the period. The company also saw 30% volume growth in non-alcoholic beer during the quarter, highlighting its leadership in the segment. While overall EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) margins of 33.4% declined 110 basis points year over year, the company continues to make progress in regaining pre-pandemic margin levels, which we believe can approach 40% over our long-term investment horizon. In Argentina, continued inflation continues to pressure beer volumes, but the company was still able to generate high-single-digit organic revenue growth due to pricing gains. We believe Ambev’s strong and sustainable competitive advantages include its portfolio of leading regional and global beer brands, its difficult-to-replicate local scale in manufacturing, and strong distribution capabilities, which contribute to monopoly-like positioning in many of its key markets and attractive financial returns. With its portfolio of regionally dominant brands, Ambev holds the leading market share in ten countries which account for over 90% of its beer volume and value. In addition to the strength of its brands, Ambev has achieved local scale in manufacturing that we believe would be difficult to profitably replicate given the combination of cost and market sizes. ….” (Click here to read the full text)
Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) is not on our list of 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds Heading Into 2026. According to our database, 21 hedge fund portfolios held Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) at the end of the fourth quarter, up from 20 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
In another article, we covered Ambev S.A. (NYSE:ABEV) and shared the list of stocks turning heads with double-digit gains. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2026 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.
