5 Stocks that Billionaire Ken Fisher Added to His Portfolio in Q1

Ken Fisher‘s investment experience spans about 44 years, and if that is not impressive enough, the money manager founded Fisher Asset Management in 1979 with about $250, which has since grown to about $61 billion worth of assets under management. The billionaire’s equity picks haven’t been performing all that well lately, but even with the current uncertainty engulfing the markets he is optimistic about his performance this year and sees clarity returning to the markets this year. We decided to take a look at some of the changes to Mr. Fisher’s portfolio during the first quarter, and zeroed in five stocks that he added to it during the period, which were the largest additions to his gargantuan portfolio. We’ll discuss those five additions below.

Our research determined that following the small-cap stocks, that hedge funds are collectively bullish on, can help a smaller investor beat the S&P 500 by around 95 basis points per month (see more details here).

#5 Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE)

 – Shares Owned by Fisher Asset Management (as of March 31): 212,400

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $21.77 Million

Shares of the $2.9 billion global consumer products company have already climbed by more than 8% so far this year. Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE) beat both the top and bottom-line estimates in its financial results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2016, and is scheduled to report its fiscal fourth quarter and full 2016 fiscal year results on April 28. The company also recently announced the completion of its $210 million acquisition of Hydro Flask, a manufacturer of high performance insulated hydration vessels for active lifestyles. Israel Englander‘s Millennium Management initiated a holding containing 105,600 Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE) shares during the October-to-December period.

#4 Lancaster Colony Corp. (NASDAQ:LANC)

 – Shares Owned by Fisher Asset Management (as of March 31): 341,200

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $37.98 Million

Mr. Fisher’s new stake in the $3 billion producer of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice markets accounts for 1.25% of the company’s outstanding stock. After a rapid slump in share price following Lancaster Colony’s announcement of its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 in late January, the stock has made up considerable ground since then and is now down by just 4% this year. The company recently named David A. Ciesinski as its President and COO, to replace the retiring Bruce L. Rosa. Mr. Ciesinski recently served as the President of Kraft Foods’ meals solutions division. Jim Simons‘ quant fund Renaissance Technologies upped its Lancaster Colony Corp. (NASDAQ:LANC) holding by 1% to 732,600 shares during the fourth quarter.

We uncover Mr. Fisher’s top three new purchases made during the first quarter on the next page.