Below we present the list of the 5 best cheap stocks to buy now according to Ray Dalio. For more background on Ray Dalio and some of his other cheap stock picks, check out the 10 best cheap stocks to buy now according to Ray Dalio.
5. General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)
We begin our 5 best cheap stocks bought by Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates with General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS), an American consumer food manufacturer. Bridgewater boosted its stake in GIS by 1277%, its current position being valued at $18.7 million. There were a total of 37 hedge funds with bullish GIS bets at the end of September.
Year-to-date, the stock returned about 19.5% (through December 2nd) and is currently valued at $36.8 billion. The company is emerging from the pandemic stronger and more profitable. On September 23rd, the company reported strong 2021 Q1 results; net sales have increased by 9% to $4.4 billion and operating profit – by 29% to $854 million. Another good news for GIS investors is the 4% increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.51 per share. General Mills (NYSE:GIS), together with its predecessor company, is proud to have paid dividends without interruption for 122 years. We have previously featured the stock in our top 10 best high dividend stocks to buy now.
4. CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS)
333,804 is the number of shares held by Bridgewater Associate in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) at the end of September, giving the firm a stake worth $19.5 million in the company. A total of 65 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in the stock, down by 8% from one quarter earlier.
According to Yahoo Finance, the stock is trading at a trailing PE ratio of 11.51 and is valued at $91.14 billion. During Q3, the company has increased year-over-year revenues by about 3.5%. Miller Value Partners renewed its position in the stock during Q3. Here is what they had to say about CVS in their Q3 2020 Investor Letter:
“CVS is a name we owned earlier but exited in the COVID hit to deploy funds to names offering more significant near term recovery potential. CVS lagged in the ensuing recovery but we still think it’s an undervalued mix of businesses. If you value the pieces, a healthcare insurance company, a pharmacy benefits manager, and a retail pharmacy, you get values roughly 50% greater than the current stock price. We think its vertical integration strategy around lowering the cost of healthcare through “Health Hubs” offers you free option value at current prices. We used long-term call options which we thought offered favorable risk-return.”
3. Kimberly Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB)
Kimberly Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB), the American personal care corporation, is a new addition to Bridgewater’s 13F portfolio at the end of September. Dalio’s stake is worth almost $25 million, consisting of 168,674 shares. The stock is trading at a modest trailing PE ratio of 20; hence, KMB made its way into our top 5 cheap stocks bought by Ray Dalio.
Hedge funds had been getting more optimistic about Kimberly Clark Corporation, as 41 funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in the stock at the end of Q2, up by 4 from Q2. The company shows strong third-quarter results. Sales have increased by 1% to $4.7 billion compared to the year-ago period, mainly due to pandemic-driven demand. Here is what Chairman and CEO Mike Hsu said with regards to the company’s third-quarter results:
“We delivered solid organic sales growth in the third quarter, with good underlying performance and increased demand because of COVID-19. We also achieved $140 million of cost savings and returned approximately $560 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. While earnings in the quarter were down as expected, we’re raising our full-year outlook and now expect adjusted earnings per share will grow 9 to 11 percent this year. We continue to execute our strategies well and remain very optimistic about our opportunities to deliver balanced and sustainable growth and create long-term shareholder value.”
2. Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU)
Bridgewater increased its stake in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU), a Chinese technology company offering Internet-related services and products. The firm’s position was worth $61.5 million at the end of September and consisted of 486,021 shares. There was no change in hedge fund interest towards the stock during Q2, with a total of 49 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey holding long positions in BIDU. However, the number of hedge fund positions dipped to 43 by the end of September.
According to Yahoo Finance, BIDU is trading at a trailing PE ratio of 11.20 and is worth $49 billion. The stock returned 19.86% from the end of June (through December 2nd), slightly more than the market’s return of 19.42% during the same period. The company is also reporting strong third-quarter financial results, having benefited from the recovery in the Chinese economy. Hermany Yu, CFO of Baidu highlights the following:
“Our team executed in the third quarter with top line growth, resilient profitability and strong cash flow, a testament to the durability of Baidu’s business, despite China experiencing a second wave of COVID-19 in July. Our focus on differentiating Baidu with open-platform, in-app search and new AI businesses has enabled Baidu Core’s adjusted EBITDA margin to reach 46% in the third quarter.”
1. NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES)
On top of the list is NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES), in which Bridgewater holds a position worth $69.5 million, consisting of 151,920 shares. The stock is trading at a trailing PE ratio of 13.21, according to Yahoo Finance.
The company shows solid financial results for Q3 2020 compared to Q3 2019; net revenues increased by 27.5% to $2.7 billion, and gross profit increased by 25.6% to $1.5 billion. NetEase’s revenues from the online gaming segment represent nearly three-quarters of its total revenues in Q3, with mobile gaming accounting for the largest portion of the segment. We have featured NetEase, Inc. in our recent top 10 video gaming stocks to buy now. Mr. William Ding, CEO and Director of NetEase, highlighted the company’s other segments as well in their Q3 financial results:
“Our other businesses including Youdao, NetEase Cloud Music and Yanxuan are also on track, with promising year-over-year topline growth. As we work to bring even more value to our community and shareholders, we will continue to focus on expanding our sustainable growth prospects for each of our businesses.”
Please see also 10 best growth stocks to buy now according to Ray Dalio and top 10 stocks Warren Buffett just bought.