In this piece, we will take a look at the ten best stocks to buy now according to Jonathan Bloomberg’s BloombergSen. if you want to skip our investor introduction and jump ahead to the top five stocks in this list, then head on over to 5 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Jonathan Bloomberg’s BloombergSen.
BloombergSen Investment Partners is a Canadian hedge fund that is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The firm was set up by Mr. Jonathan Bloomberg in 2008, and it is a privately-held company.
Mr. Bloomberg has decades of experience working in the financial industry. He completed his bachelor’s degree in economics from Tufts University in 1996. Immediately after graduating, the executive embarked on his decades long career in the financial world, by starting work as an analyst at the firm Salomon Smith Barney, focusing on mergers and acquisitions and high yield initial and secondary public offerings. He would go on to work at the firm for two years, leaving the role in 1998. A year later he would then decide to expand his education and secure admission at the illustrious Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania for his Master’s in Business Administration.
The MBA would prove to be fruitful, as immediately after graduating, Mr. Bloomberg would head on to become a vice president of Burgundy Asset Management, an independent asset management firm also based in Canada. At this fund, the executive worked for its small and medium business funds for both Canadian and American companies. After leaving Burgundy in 2007, the now hedge fund executive set up BloomberSen a couple of months later in February 2008.
BloombergSen describes itself as a long term, value investor. Through this, the firm evaluates its investment decisions over the course of five to ten years, as opposed to monthly or annually evaluating them like some of its other peers. This also provides it with tax benefits and low costs as the investments remain in its portfolio for a longer time period. Additionally, the firms that it chooses to invest in often have stable revenue, strong market positions, and low competition – which then ends up benefitting the discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation process through lower volatility. A DCF model projects a company’s cash flow into the future and adjusts it with the cost of capital and debt to wager a guess at the current true value to determine whether the market share price is under or overvalued.
Additionally, the hedge fund does not open its doors to anyone, and if someone is looking to invest with BloombergSen, then a minimum investment of $2 million is required. It also selects only those firms whose shares are significantly undervalued on the public stock market, which then ensures that the portfolio as a whole is protected from both economic downturns and other volatility factors.
By the end of this year’s second quarter, BloombergSen had a portfolio that was worth $1.6 billion. In this portfolio, some top firms that are well known globally are W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB), Aon plc (NYSE:AON), and Colliers International Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CIGI).
Source: https://bloombergsen.com/team/jonathan-bloomberg/
Our Methodology
We took a look at BloombergSen’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission to pick out its top investments for this year’s June quarter.
10 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Jonathan Bloomberg’s BloombergSen
10. HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)
BloombergSen’s Stake Value: $58 million
Percentage of BloombergSen’s 13F Portfolio: 3.63%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63
HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) is a healthcare services provider that is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, the United States. The company operates hospitals that offer patients a variety of services such as inpatient, diagnostic, and emergency services.
Mr. Bloomberg’s hedge fund owned a $58 million stake in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) as part of its investments for this year’s second quarter. This came in the form of the fund owning 350,428 shares of the company and it represented 3.63% of its investment portfolio. Insider Monkey’s survey of 895 hedge fund portfolios for their Q2 2022 stakes saw 63 investors in the firm.
HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) is one of the countless firms that is struggling with the historic inflationary wave ushered in by loose central bank monetary policies and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The firm’s latest fiscal quarter saw its revenue grow by $400 million, but at the same time, its operating income dropped by $180 million. Nevertheless, Raymond James raised HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)’s share price target to $250 from $230 in September 2022, outlining that the latest quarterly performance and labor trends are positives for the firm.
HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA)’s largest investor in our database is Natixis Global Asset Management’s Harris Associates which owns 7.7 million shares that are worth $1.3 billion.
9. Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI)
BloombergSen’s Stake Value: $60 million
Percentage of BloombergSen’s 13F Portfolio: 3.7%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 66
Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI) is an American healthcare insurance services and products provider that is one of the oldest companies in the world as it was set up in 1792 and is headquartered in Bloomfield, Connecticut. The firm provides a host of insurance products such as pharmacy, benefits management, care, and delivery.
Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI) is one of America’s largest healthcare insurance companies, as it employs more than 75,000 people. Over the last 12 years, the firm’s earnings per share have grown by 15% on average, and the company generated a massive $1.2 billion in operating cash flows during its second fiscal quarter.
For its June quarter of 2022 investments, BloombergSen owned 228,074 Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI) shares that were worth $60 million and represented 3.7% of its investment portfolio. During the same time period, 66 out of the 895 hedge funds polled by Insider monkey had also invested in the company.
Out of these, Larry Robbins’s Glenview Capital is Cigna Corporation (NYSE:CI)’s largest investor. It owns 2 million shares that are worth $547 million.
8. Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)
BloombergSen’s Stake Value: $68 million
Percentage of BloombergSen’s 13F Portfolio: 4.21%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 17
Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) is a specialty finance company that helps firms with their working capital management and debt recovery. The firm does this through purchasing receivables (a process called factoring in the industry), and working with individuals to meet their financing obligations. Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) is headquartered in San Diego, California, the United States.
Mr. Bloomberg’s hedge fund owned 1.1 million Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) shares as part of its Q2 2022 investment portfolio. This allowed it to own a $68 million stake in the company and it represented 4.21% of the investment portfolio. Insider Monkey’s 895 hedge fund survey for their June quarter of 2022 investments saw 17 investors in the firm.
Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) is the largest company in the United States and the United Kingdom when it comes to the total amount of debt recollected. By the end of its second fiscal quarter, the firm’s outstanding collections in 2021 were normalized, and its collections stood at $492 million in the quarter after a 19% drop. Overall revenue stood at $357 million for a 17% drop.
Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)’s second largest investor is D.E. Shaw’s D E Shaw which owns 467,006 shares that are worth $26 million.
7. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)
BloombergSen’s Stake Value: $80 million
Percentage of BloombergSen’s 13F Portfolio: 4.99%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 153
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is an American company that has a host of services and products under its portfolio that range from software platforms to consumer technology gadgets. The software side has services such as YouTube, search engine Google, and Gmail, while the gadget side includes smartphones, smart speakers, and notebooks.
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s Google division announced its latest smartphone lineup, the Pixel 7, in October 2022. The gadgets build on the lineup’s excellent camera performance, and they use leading edge hardware – for a lethal combination with a lower price point compared to other high end smartphones. BofA reduced Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s share price target to $114 from $125 in October 2022, stating that recessionary headwinds won’t bode well for the firm.
BloombergSen’s June quarter of 2022 portfolio saw the firm own 36,998 Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) shares. These were worth $80 million and they represented 4.99% of the firm’s investment portfolio. During the same time period, 153 out of the 895 hedge funds polled by Insider Monkey had also invested in the company.
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s largest investor in our database is Chris Hohn’s TCI Fund Management which owns 2.4 million shares that are worth $5.4 billion.
Lakehouse Capital mentioned the company in its Q2 2022 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) reported another strong quarterly result despite the tough macroeconomic conditions. Revenue increased by 13% as Search proved resilient, primarily led by strength in the travel and retail verticals. YouTube advertising growth was lighter and moderated due to a tough comparison period and a general softening in brand advertising spend. That said, YouTube’s user engagement and time spent still continues to grow which bodes well for future monetisation opportunities. Google Cloud outpaced the company’s overall growth with revenue increasing by 36% and while it has yet to show any signs of profitability, we remain supportive of Alphabet continuing to reinvest in its cloud business given the size of the market opportunity ahead. On the cost front, the company added another 10,000 employees during the quarter, but notably, the CFO mentioned that hiring will likely slow down over the next twelve months as the company focuses on greater operating efficiency. Overall, we’re pleased with how the company has performed and are confident that management will be able to control costs, if or when the economic environment becomes more challenging.”
6. Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)
BloombergSen’s Stake Value: $91 million
Percentage of BloombergSen’s 13F Portfolio: 5.67%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 69
Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) is an American health and well being company. The firm provides services such as medical plans, supplemental benefit plans, and prescription drug programs. Additionally, it also provides health insurance benefits that cover dental and vision benefits. It is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.
Mr. Bloomberg’s hedge fund held a $91 million stake in Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) as the second quarter of this year ended. This came in the form of 196,406 shares and it represented 5.67% of the firm’s investment portfolio. Insider Monkey studied 895 hedge fund portfolios for their Q2 2022 investments to discover that 69 had also bought a stake in the company.
Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) earns more than 80% of its revenue from Medicare programs, and its scale allows the firm to expand its healthcare offerings, for a competitive advantage that sees its customers gain services that they would have otherwise paid for, for free.
Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group is Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM)’s largest investor in our hedge fund database, via owning 1.1 million shares that are worth $518 million.
Diamond Hill Capital Management mentioned the company in its Q2 2022 investment letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) stock has experienced higher volatility over the past year, and its 7% advance in Q2 largely reflected a recovery from the strong selloff that followed a disappointing pullback in its Medicare Advantage member enrollment guidance for 2022 back in January. Despite the near-term volatility, we are confident in Humana’s long-term value creation plan and its ability to achieve market enrollment growth and improvement in its health care services businesses.”
Humana Inc. (NYSE:HUM) is one of Jonathan Bloomberg’s favorite stock picks, joining the likes of W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB), Aon plc (NYSE:AON), and Colliers International Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CIGI).
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Disclosure: None. 10 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Jonathan Bloomberg’s BloombergSen is originally published on Insider Monkey.