The 4 Most-Bought Guru Stocks of the 4th Quarter

Gurus are buying into ‘big names’ as coronavirus fears increase Continue reading... Read More...

<p class="canvas-atom canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)–sm Mt(0.8em)–sm" type="text" content="According to the Aggregated Portfolio of Gurus, a Premium feature of GuruFocus, the four most-bought stocks among gurus during the fourth quarter of 2019 were Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE:BABA), Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) and UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH).” data-reactid=”11″>According to the Aggregated Portfolio of Gurus, a Premium feature of GuruFocus, the four most-bought stocks among gurus during the fourth quarter of 2019 were Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE:BABA), Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) and UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH).

Dow tumbles on increased coronavirus fears

<p class="canvas-atom canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)–sm Mt(0.8em)–sm" type="text" content="On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank below 29,000 for the first time since Feb. 4, closing at 28,992.41. Friday's close represented a 227.57-point drop from the previous close of 29,219.98. Dow-component Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT), the company founded by Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio), tumbled 3.16% for the day.” data-reactid=”19″>On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank below 29,000 for the first time since Feb. 4, closing at 28,992.41. Friday’s close represented a 227.57-point drop from the previous close of 29,219.98. Dow-component Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT), the company founded by Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio), tumbled 3.16% for the day.

The National Health Commission of China reported over 800 new cases of the coronavirus overnight; additionally, South Korea reported an increase of 200 cases. CNBC added that global growth “is still set to fall” near zero in the first quarter even if the outbreak recedes, according to a research note from Peter Berezin, chief global strategist at BCA Research. Berezin further said that a near-term hit to corporate earnings is nearly unavoidable even if global growth bounces back later in the year.

Hedge funds flock to big-name companies like Amazon

<p class="canvas-atom canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)–sm Mt(0.8em)–sm" type="text" content="CNBC also reported that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) said in a note that the typical hedge fund "now carries 69% of the long portfolio in its top-10 holdings, up from 55% in 2005." The note also mentions that investors are "crowding into the biggest stocks" like Amazon and Microsoft.” data-reactid=”33″>CNBC also reported that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) said in a note that the typical hedge fund “now carries 69% of the long portfolio in its top-10 holdings, up from 55% in 2005.” The note also mentions that investors are “crowding into the biggest stocks” like Amazon and Microsoft.

<p class="canvas-atom canvas-text Mb(1.0em) Mb(0)–sm Mt(0.8em)–sm" type="text" content="GuruFocus' Aggregated Portfolio reports that 22 gurus bought shares of the Seattle-based retail giant during the fourth quarter of 2019. Gurus with large holdings in Amazon include Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio) and Spiros Segalas (Trades, Portfolio).” data-reactid=”34″>GuruFocus’ Aggregated Portfolio reports that 22 gurus bought shares of the Seattle-based retail giant during the fourth quarter of 2019. Gurus with large holdings in Amazon include Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio) and Spiros Segalas (Trades, Portfolio).

GuruFocus ranks Amazon’s profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a 4.5-star business predictability rank, a return on equity that outperforms 87.03% of global competitors and a three-year revenue growth rate that outperforms 91.30% of global cyclical retail companies.

Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio)’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B) owns 537,300 shares of Amazon as of quarter-end.

Alibaba

Nineteen gurus purchased shares of Alibaba, including Steven Romick (Trades, Portfolio), Charles Brandes (Trades, Portfolio)’ Brandes Investment and Howard Marks (Trades, Portfolio)’ Oaktree Capital.

GuruFocus ranks the Chinese retail giant’s profitability 9 out of 10 on several safe investing signs, which include a high Piotroski F-score of 7 and operating margins that are outperforming over 94% of global competitors despite contracting over the past five years.

Facebook

Forty-one gurus own shares of Facebook, with 17 gurus buying shares. Gurus with large holdings in the Menlo Park, California-based social media giant include the firms of Julian Robertson (Trades, Portfolio) proteges Chase Coleman (Trades, Portfolio) and Andreas Halvorsen (Trades, Portfolio).

GuruFocus ranks Facebook’s profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include expanding profit margins and returns that are outperforming over 83% of global competitors.

UnitedHealth

Thirty-three gurus have holdings in UnitedHealth, with 17 gurus buying shares. Gurus with large holdings in the Minnetonka, Minnesota-based health plans company include Dodge & Cox and the Vanguard Health Care Fund (Trades, Portfolio).

GuruFocus ranks UnitedHealth’s profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a five-star business predictability rank and a return on equity that outperforms 80% of global competitors.

See also

According to the Aggregated Portfolio, four other companies had 16 guru buys each: Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE:SCHW), ViacomCBS Inc. (VIAC), DuPont de Nemours Inc. (NYSE:DD) and Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ:CMCSA).

Disclosure: No positions.