Credit: Shutterstock photoWith broader stock market indices nearing what many consider to be fully valued, next year’s best performing investors will likely be those that excel in the art of identifying value.
At billionairesportfolio.com, we track and analyze the moves of the world’s best billionaire investors and hedge funds. Over the past 15-years, there has been perhaps no one better at identifying value, than billionaire Stephen Mandel of Lone Pine Capital.
Mandel, a Dartmouth graduate and Harvard MBA, is a “Tiger Cub.” He worked for legendary billionaire Julian Robertson in the 1990s, before starting his own hedge fund in 1997.
His hedge fund, Lone Pine, has returned 30% annualized (before fees) since 1997. This compares to a 7.5% annualized return in the S&P 500 during the same time period. To put this performance in perspective, investing $20,000 at 30% annualized for 15-years, grows to more than $1 million.
Mandel has, of course, achieved these world-beating returns in one of the most volatile 15-year periods in stock market history – and environment dominated by bubbles and crises. Most impressively, he’s done it as a classic bottom-up stock picker, not from global macro trading. Currently Mandel’s hedge fund runs more than $20 billion in assets. This has made Mandel a rich man. According to Forbes he is worth more than $2 billion.
He made a brilliant move in Tiffany’s, buying up more than 5% of the stock in the weeks prior to earnings. Tiffany’s reported better than expected earnings on improved margins resulting from lower gold and silver prices. And Mandel reaped a windfall in his TIF shares. This is the kind of fundamental catalyst-driven investment that Mandel looks for when he takes a large stake in a company’s stock.
Here’s a look at Mandel’s five biggest positions according to his most recent filing:
1) Mastercard Incorporated (MA) – Mandel’s biggest position is in MA. He has almost 7% of his portfolio in Mastercard.
2) Baidu Inc. (BIDU) – BIDU represents almost 7% of his $20 billion portfolio. BIDU is a pure play on China.
3) Priceline (PCLN) is 6% of his portfolio.
4) Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) – Mandel has almost 5% of his portfolio in VRX.
5) Facebook (FB) – Mandel has 4% of his portfolio in Facebook.
BillionairesPortfolio.com helps average investors invest alongside Wall Street billionaires. By selecting the best ideas from the best billionaire investors and hedge funds, our exited stock investment recommendations have averaged a 31% gain since 2012, beating even the great Carl Icahn’s record for the same period.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
