This Is What Hedge Funds Bought And Sold In Q4: Complete 13F Summary
Many years ago, hedge fund 13-F reporting season was a time of excitement for all those who find perverse delight in reverse-engineering what hedge funds owned some 45 days ago (without even having a glimpse of their offsetting short book), as if it would give them the magic key to outperforming the market (it wouldn't). That excitement faded away about 5 years ago when it became painfully clear that in a time of central planning and activist central banks which would never allow another bear market, and as a result hedge funds failed to outperform the S&P500 (which charges 0 and 0 compared to the 2 and 20 demanded by the "smart money") every single year of the past decade. It's also why, with a few notable exceptions (such as Dan Loeb, Warren Buffett and a handful of others), almost nobody cares about 13F filings anymore.
For those who still do, and have yet to grasp that in our day and age only buybacks, ETFs, HFT stop hunts, and central bank balance sheets matter, here is a summary of what the most prominent hedge funds did in the fourth quarter.
First, as noted last week, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway unexpectedly added a position in supermarket operator Kroger, which gained as much as 7.3% in extended trading on Friday. The fund also added Biogen, while trimming its holdings in bank stocks including Wells Fargo & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp.
Meanwhile, according to Bloomberg, Google owner Alphabet saw hedge funds including Eminence Capital and Soroban Capital trim their holdings in its Class A or Class C shares. Viking Global exited its stake in the company’s Class C shares while trimming its position in the Class A shares. Balyasny exited its position in the Class A shares. Tiger Global added a stake in Alphabet’s Class A shares.
Appaloosa Investment added a position in Intelsat S.A., which has fallen 89% from an October high, while two of the top reported holders, BC Partners Advisorsand Silver Lake Group, trimmed their positions in the satellite operator.
Tiger Global tripled its holdings in Uber Technologies Inc., as Viking Global more than doubled its stake in the company. Balyasny and Eminence both added positions in the company, while Arrowgrass and Lansdowne exited.
Some investors trimmed or exited their stakes in Axalta Coating Systems Ltd.amid the company’s prolonged sales process. Corsair Capital Management sold its shares in the car-paint maker as Jana Partners trimmed its holding in the stock. Soroban added to its stake.
Notably, former hedge fund darling Beyond Meat saw funds including Tiger Global and Eminence sell off their shares in the company. Coatue, on the other hand, added a position in the faux-meat maker.
A quick recap of what the rest did is below, courtesy of Bloomberg:
ADAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS LP
Top new buys: BMY, MMM, JCI, TJX, BIIB, CABA, ETN, XP, ITW, KNX
Top exits: ANAB, ABBV, WM, FGEN, GT, ATUS, DOW, LYB, SWK, W
Boosted stakes in: UTX, AGN, COST, ARNC, SRE, CF, FB, JNJ, BAC, LHX
Cut stakes in: CNP, MPC, VST, VMC, DE, PVH, LMT, HON, DIS, EXC
ARROWGRASS
Top new buys: DUK
Top exits: UBER, SPCE, PAE, GMHI, VVNT, VXX, VRT, Z, RPLA, ACTT
Boosted stakes in: HAL, PFE, GM, ATVI, COST, LRCX, GIS
Cut stakes in: ABBV, SLB, AAL, WYNN, LLY, CAH, BX, T, PYPL, JNJ
BALYASNY ASSET MANAGEMENT
Top new buys: XOM, JCI, AAP, ESS, ETN, ZEN, TIF, VRSK, UBER, ADBE
Top exits: XLI, XLU, C, GOOGL, XLB, MSFT, RTN, ZION, V, ALLE
Boosted stakes in: AIG, PNC, BAC, AMZN, BA, AXP, GS, LHX, DE, UNP
Cut stakes in: NSC, QSR, USB, PM, COP, MTB, EA, HAS, JBHT, MET
BAUPOST GROUP
Top new buys: HPQ, ERI, MDRIQ
Top exits: TAK, AR, GOSS, PRTK
Boosted stakes in: LBTYK, EBAY, MCK
Cut stakes in: BMY, QRVO, NUAN, SYF, PCG, CARS, AKBA
BRIDGEWATER ASSOCIATES LP
Top new buys: JPM, BAC, WFC, C, USB, TSLA, GS, MS, PNC, VFC
Top exits: BIIB, XEC, WBA, ALXN, DVA, FL, ABC, KSS, ANTM, SWN
Boosted stakes in: EWT, INDA, MCHI, EWW, FXI, LEN, LOW, DAL, GPC, APTV
Cut stakes in: IEMG, VWO, EEM, ADS, LB, M, RL, JWN, IVZ, XLNX
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/what-hedge-funds-bought-and-sold-q4-complete-13f-summary