In this article, we discuss the 10 stocks to buy and hold according to Bill Gates. If you want to skip our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to the 5 Stocks to Buy and Hold According to Bill Gates.
Bill Gates, the founder of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, is among the wealthiest individuals in the world with a total net worth of over $136 billion. His success has inspired many to take up careers in the world of technology. In addition to his exploits with tech giant Microsoft, Gates has been almost equally successful with his investments at the stock market, although they often seem to slip under the radar due to the attention on the other accomplishments of the billionaire. Michael Larson, who oversees the trust, also manages the personal wealth of Gates.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust was started almost three decades ago and has now grown in portfolio value to over $23 billion. Some of the top stocks in the portfolio at the end of September included Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-A), and Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT), among others discussed in detail below. There are just 22 holdings of the fund, most of which are long-term investments that have featured in the portfolio since 2012. The fund made new purchases in 7 stocks between June and September.
Our Methodology
The stocks were picked from the third quarter regulatory filings of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust. All the stocks listed below are long-term holdings of the fund present in the portfolio for at least seven or more years.
Stocks to Buy and Hold According to Bill Gates
10. Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 16
Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV) is a media company based in Mexico. Morgan Stanley analyst Cesar Medina recently upgraded the stock to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $13, backing the firm to achieve operational improvements through a new joint venture for content assets.
The hedge fund of Bill Gates entered the fourth quarter of 2021 with 16.3 million shares of Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV) in the portfolio worth around $179 million. The company has featured on the Gates portfolio since the third quarter of 2012.
At the end of the third quarter of 2021, 16 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $843 million in Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV), compared to 17 in the previous quarter worth $1.1 billion.
Just like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-A), and Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT), Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV) is one of the stocks that hedge funds are buying.
In its Q2 2021 investor letter, Oakmark Funds, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. (NYSE:TV) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Grupo Televisa, a media company headquartered in Mexico and the world’s largest producer of Spanish-language content, was a top contributor for the second quarter. Grupo Televisa’s share price jumped when the company revealed that it would merge its content and media assets with Univision. In a call with shareholders, CEO of Televisa, Alfonso de Angoitia, and CEO of Univision, Wade Davis, provided details on the $4.8 billion agreement, which combines these leading media businesses in the two largest Spanish-speaking markets in the world. Overall, we think the deal makes strategic sense as streaming is the future in television, and the new company will very likely become the dominant Spanish-language streaming service. There will also be synergies from combining the two businesses, which should improve profitability versus when they were stand-alone businesses. In addition, over the long term, we believe consolidation in the media sector will continue, providing an opportunity for the new entity to partner with a larger company. Aside from the strategic merits, we believe Televisa received an attractive valuation for its content business as the $4.8B value was higher than our internal estimates. We commend management for this transaction.”
9. FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 49
FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) provides transport, e-commerce, and business services. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, as of the end of September, had more than 1.4 million shares of the company worth $327 million in the portfolio. The fund first bought a stake in the firm in the third quarter of 2012.
FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) posted earnings for the second fiscal quarter on December 16, reporting earnings per share of $4.83, beating estimates by $0.54. The revenue over the period was $23 billion, surpassing predictions by $1 billion.
At the end of the third quarter of 2021, 49 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $1.6 billion in FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX), compared to 61 in the previous quarter worth $2.1 billion.
In its Q3 2021 investor letter, Artisan Partners, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Our weakest Q3 performers included FedEx. Shares of FedEx, a global shipping and logistics firm, were held back by disappointing business results as labor cost headwinds and air network disruptions overshadowed solid top-line trends. We think the company should be able to overcome these near-term issues. Importantly, FedEx has strong pricing power as it operates in a consolidated global shipping industry. In September, the company announced it would increase its shipping rates by an average of 5.9% across most of its services, which is the first time in several years that its annual increase would exceed 5.0%. The industry’s renewed pricing discipline is a welcome change, reflecting a broader commitment to earn better returns on invested capital. FedEx is also closer to fully integrating TNT, a European-focused parcel company it acquired in 2016. The market is beginning to incorporate a higher probability FedEx will fully integrate TNT, which will provide a significant boost to profits. The stock now trades at a near-trough multiple of less than 12X 2022 earnings, so we added to our position on weakness.”
8. United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
In the filings for the third quarter, the fund detailed that it owned over 2.2 million shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) worth $415 million, representing 1.79% of the portfolio. United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) provides package delivery, transportation, logistics, and financial services. United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) has been present in the Gates portfolio for nearly seven years.
United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) has an impressive dividend history with 12 consecutive years of dividend growth and 21 years of payouts. It recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.02, in line with previous. The forward yield was 1.94%.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, New York-based Renaissance Technologies is a leading shareholder in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) with 854,700 shares worth more than $155 million.
In its Q2 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“We funded the shift primarily with trims in UPS following big gains in this name. UPS is a long-term holding that have been and remain core holdings. During the quarter, however, we took gains and resized the positions to reflect their current risk-reward post strong increases in the stocks.
UPS too has been a core, long-term holding. For many years its stock languished alongside fundamental performance that was both uneven and often uninspiring. Since Carol Tomé took the reins last summer and capitalized on COVID-19-related freight disruptions, UPS’s earnings have soared, and the stock has followed suit. We trimmed the position toward the end of the quarter despite continued near-term momentum and an undemanding valuation multiple. This trim reflects the longerterm risk, though hard to quantify, that Amazon may become a full-fledged competitor and meaningfully disrupt the dynamics of the industry. While not our base case, this risk cannot be disproven. We continue to be very bullish on UPS’s near-term outlook and optimistic about its longer-term outlook, while also continually looking over our shoulder to make sure Amazon is not on our heels.”
7. Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 45
Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI) is a real estate investment trust headquartered in Texas. Deutsche Bank analyst Matthew Niknam has a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $175. In a recent investor note, the analyst underlined that the firm remained an “outsized beneficiary” of robust early 5G builds in the US.
Latest filings show that Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust is long on over 4.5 million shares in Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI) worth more than $791 million, representing 3.41% of the portfolio. The holding is one of the oldest of the fund, first popping up in the portfolio in filings for the fourth quarter of 2014.
Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI) with 2.4 million shares worth more than $425 million.
In its Q2 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an asset management firm, highlighted a few stocks and Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI) was one of them. Here is what the fund said:
“Turning to the U.S., U.S. communications company Crown Castle was one of the lead performers. Crown Castle is the leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure in the U.S. with a portfolio of approximately 40,000 towers. Crown Castle performed well after the U.S. network operators announced plans to deploy 5G spectrum, with investment much larger and much sooner than the market was anticipating.”
6. Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 39
Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions. According to the latest 13F data, the fund holds a stake in the firm worth more than $910 million, consisting of 4.3 million shares. It first bought a stake in the company in the third quarter of 2012.
In late October, Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) announced that it had agreed to acquire Purolite, a global provider of high-end ion exchange resins, in a deal worth $3.7 billion. The purchase is critical to high quality drug production and biopharma product purification.
At the end of the third quarter of 2021, 39 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $2.5 billion in Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL), compared to 48 in the previous quarter worth $2.7 billion.
In addition to Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-A), and Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT), Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) is one of the stocks on the radar of elite investors.
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Disclosure. None. 10 Stocks to Buy and Hold According to Bill Gates is originally published on Insider Monkey.
