In this article, we discuss 5 stocks to buy now according to James Katz’s Humankind Investments. If you want to read our detailed analysis of Katz’s history, investment philosophy, and hedge fund performance, go directly to 10 Stocks to Buy Now According to James Katz’s Humankind Investments.
5. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)
Humankind Investments’ Stake Value: $4,467,000
Percentage of Humankind Investments’ 13F Portfolio: 1.79%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) provides individuals, companies, and government agencies worldwide with communications, technology, information, and entertainment goods and services. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) was downgraded from Buy to Neutral by Goldman Sachs analyst Brett Feldman on April 25, with a price objective of $55, down from $61. Feldman said Verizon’s potential for outperformance over the next 12 months is limited.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) on April 22 posted earnings for the first quarter of 2022. The reported EPS came in at $1.35, in line with the estimates. Revenue over the period gained 2.1% compared to the previous year’s quarter, reaching $33.6 billion.
In the fourth quarter of 2021, 63 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database owned holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) worth $10.88 billion, up from 57 in the previous quarter worth $10.36 billion.
In the fourth quarter, Humankind Investments raised its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) by 22% to 85,962 shares, accounting for 1.79% of the overall portfolio. Heathbridge Capital Management is the leading shareholder of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), with 554,075 shares worth $28.23 million.
ClearBridge Investments, in its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter, mentioned Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ). Here is what the fund said:
“Over the last year, we have repositioned our portfolio to navigate the course we see ahead. We added to more defensive areas of the portfolio like telecom (Verizon). While the next month or two will likely prove choppy on account of the Omicron variant, we believe that Omicron, like Delta, represents a speed bump on the way to recovery rather than a true change in course. We see strong economic momentum continuing in 2022 and we expect interest rates to rise. After a decade of remarkably low rates, we would not be surprised if this change in direction is accompanied by some fits and starts in the markets. With our emphasis on pricing power, purposeful sector exposure, valuation discipline, and a strong dividend profile, we believe we are well-positioned for the year ahead.”
4. Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY)
Humankind Investments’ Stake Value: $5,111,000
Percentage of Humankind Investments’ 13F Portfolio: 2.05%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 28
Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY) manufactures and sells consumer, professional, and industrial electronic equipment, instruments, gadgets, gaming consoles, and software. CLSA analyst Amit Garg downgraded Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY) from Buy to Outperform with a price objective of 13,000 yen, down from 18,600 yen on April 13. According to the analyst, the company’s cash flow will be spent on games to counter its low-returning competitors.
According to Insider Monkey’s Q4 database, 28 hedge funds owned a total holding of $609.80 million in Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY), up from 19 funds in the previous quarter with a total stake of $388.86 million.
Humankind Investments held 40,439 shares in Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY) worth over $5.11 million, representing 2.05% of its Q4 investment portfolio. Of the 28 hedge funds that were bullish on Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY) according to the fourth quarter database of Insider Monkey, GAMCO Investors is the leading stakeholder of the company, holding 1.85 million shares worth $233.46 million.
In its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter, Cooper Investors mentioned Sony Group Corporation (NYSE:SONY) and discussed its stance on the firm. Here is what the fund said:
“In recent years we have observed a growing market for music rights which represent another way for owners of record labels and music libraries like portfolio holdings Warner Music Group and Sony (via its subsidiary Sony Music, ~25% of our estimated enterprise value) to deploy capital, grow their businesses and create value for shareholders.
In the first few days of 2022 Warner closed a deal to acquire David Bowie’s back catalogue for about US$250m which follows on from Bruce Springsteen’s catalogue sale to Sony for upwards of US$500m and Bob Dylan’s sale to Universal Music for a similar amount…” (Click here to see the full text)”
3. Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)
Humankind Investments’ Stake Value: $5,683,000
Percentage of Humankind Investments’ 13F Portfolio: 2.28%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 57
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is a global technology company based in San Jose, California. At the end of December 2021, 57 hedge funds monitored by Insider Monkey were long Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), down from 63 funds the previous quarter. The total value of the stakes owned in the fourth quarter was $3.43 billion.
Morgan Stanley analyst Meta Marshall decreased her price target on Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) to $59 from $61, maintaining an Equal Weight rating on the stock but downgrading her industry perspective on Telecom & Networking Equipment to Cautious from In-Line on April 12. The analyst told investors that she is beginning to notice signs of deterioration, such as a more cautious flash survey on hardware and reseller checks indicating weaker second-half pipelines.
Humankind Investments started building its position in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) in the fourth quarter of 2020, and in the fourth quarter of 2021, it held over 89,676 shares of the company valued at $5.68 million. Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) represents 2.28% of the hedge fund’s 13F portfolio. Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management is the most significant stakeholder of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, with 12.78 million shares worth almost $809.79 million.
Here is what experts at ClearBridge Investments had to say about Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) in its third-quarter 2021 investor letter:
“We reinvested a portion of the proceeds into existing holding Cisco Systems, which also has highly valuable technology and an improving secular growth story with its leading position in core networking hardware, as well as in its growing software and services business. Cisco has refocused on winning share in the large and growing hyperscale market and has been investing aggressively in R&D to support growth. We believe Cisco has found new legs after previously ceding some growth opportunities in cloud while maintaining its strong presence in the carrier and enterprise markets. Cisco boasts a strong balance sheet and accelerating multiyear growth while trading at a modest multiple of earnings.”
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Humankind Investments’ Stake Value: $11,737,000
Percentage of Humankind Investments’ 13F Portfolio: 4.72%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 262
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a software and hardware company that creates, manufactures, and distributes products such as the Microsoft Office suite of productivity programs. James Katz’s investment firm owned 34,897 Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021.
On April 19, Citi analyst Tyler Radke decreased his price target on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) from $386 to $355 while maintaining a Buy rating. His objective was lowered to reflect slower PC growth and the addition of Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN). Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) acquired Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) on March 4.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) was identified in the public stock portfolios of 262 hedge funds, up from 250 funds in the previous quarter, according to Insider Monkey’s Q4 data. Hedge funds had a total investment of $75.67 billion in the fourth quarter.
In its Q4 2021 investor letter, Baron Opportunity Fund mentioned Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). Here is what the fund said:
“Shares of Microsoft Corporation, a cloud-software leader and provider of software productivity tools and infrastructure, rose during the quarter, following a strong earnings report highlighting solid demand for its broad product stack and continued momentum migrating its business to the cloud. Microsoft’s results continued to be strong across the board, with total revenue growing 20% in constant currency, beating Street estimates by 3%; an acceleration in Commercial Cloud revenue to 34% constant-currency growth; operating margins expanding to just under 45%; earnings growth of 23%; and free cash flow growth of 30%. We believe the company is positioned to deliver 13% to 15% organic growth over the next three years, underpinned by total addressable market expansion and continued market share gains across its disruptive cloud product portfolio.”
1. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Humankind Investments’ Stake Value: $14,030,000
Percentage of Humankind Investments’ 13F Portfolio: 5.65%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 134
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) develops, manufactures, and sells smartphones, laptops, tablets, wearables, and accessories, as well as a variety of other products and services. James Katz owned 79,013 shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) worth $14.03 million as of Q4 2021, accounting for 5.65% of his overall 13F portfolio. In the fourth quarter of 2021, the hedge fund added 438 shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to its portfolio.
The number of hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey having stakes in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) grew to 134 in Q4, from 120 in the preceding quarter. These funds hold consolidated stakes worth $ 186 billion, up from $146 billion.
ClearBridge Investments mentioned Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its Q4 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Despite these mixed emerging growth results, the ClearBridge Global Growth Strategy outperformed the benchmark due to resilience among our secular and structural growth holdings. The bulk of these contributions came from U.S. mega-cap growth stocks Apple and Microsoft which continued to uniquely act both offensively and defensively as they have through most of the pandemic.”
You can also take a peek at 10 Stocks to Buy Now According to Steve Ketchum’s Sound Point Capital and 10 Software Stocks to Buy Now According to Jim Davidson’s Silver Lake Partners.
