In this article, we discuss 5 tech stocks to buy according to billionaire George Soros. If you want our detailed analysis of these stocks, go directly to 10 Tech Stocks To Buy According To Billionaire George Soros.
5. salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Soros Fund Management’s Stake Value: $30,105,000
Percentage of Soros Fund Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.55%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 119
salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) is a California-based cloud computing company focused on providing customer relationship management services worldwide. Hedge fund sentiment was positive around salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) in Q3 2021, with 119 funds holding long positions in the company, up from 108 funds in the prior quarter.
Soros Fund Management started building its position in salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) back in Q1 2012, but the fund was inconsistent with its stake in the company, buying and selling off shares entirely over the years. Heading into Q3 2021, Soros Fund Management held 111,000 salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) shares, worth $30.1 million, representing 0.55% of the total 13F securities for the period.
On February 7, Loop Capital analyst Yun Kim lowered the price target on salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) to $225 from $275 and kept a Hold rating on the shares as part of a broader research note on the software sector. The analyst stated that his checks into salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) suggest largely steady business trends driven by a consistent volume of smaller and medium-sized expansion deals, though his reduced price target reflects expected lower cash flow estimates in 2024 and beyond.
Among the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Fisher Asset Management held the largest stake in salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) in Q3 2021, with roughly 14 million shares worth $3.7 billion.
Here is what ClearBridge Large Cap Growth Strategy has to say about salesforce.com, inc. (NYSE:CRM) in its Q3 2021 investor letter:
“On an individual stock basis, leading contributors to absolute returns in the third quarter included positions in Salesforce.com. Meanwhile, with a new CFO focused on delivering consistent growth and expanding margins, Salesforce could soon surpass SAP as the world’s largest enterprise applications provider with an all-subscription-based model. The recent acquisition of Slack should better connect the company’s products and services with its users as the messaging platform becomes more dynamic and interactive.”
4. Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ)
Soros Fund Management’s Stake Value: $88,480,000
Percentage of Soros Fund Management’s 13F Portfolio: 1.63%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 20
Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) is a cloud-based payments technology company that issues cards and solutions to e-commerce vendors, digital banks, tech companies, and prominent financial institutions. In Q3 2021, Soros Fund Management held 4 million Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) shares, worth $88.4 million, representing 1.63% of the total 13F investments.
On February 9, Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) provided financial guidance for net revenue and adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter ending December 31, 2021. In light of higher than expected processing volumes, the company expects to outperform the previously announced guidance for both its net revenue and adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter.
Barclays analyst Ramsey El-Assal lowered the price target on Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) to $20 from $35 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares on January 21. The analyst remains “quite positive” on Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ)’s growth prospects and believes the company is well positioned as a “clean F22 beat & raise story.”
A total of 20 hedge funds were bullish on Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) in the third quarter of 2021, down from 35 funds in the preceding quarter. Coatue Management is the leading Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) stakeholder as of Q3 2021, with 28.4 million shares valued at $612.4 million.
Here is what Alger Spectra Fund has to say about Marqeta, Inc. (NASDAQ:MQ) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“Margeta facilitates the implementation of digital payment technologies. It is a Positive Dynamic Change beneficiary in the digital payments industry. We believe as more commerce is conducted digitally, the digitization and transformation of the payments ecosystem is needed, which Margeta seeks to address through its modern payment card issuing platform, providing infrastructure and tools for building configurable payment cards. Margeta offers issuer processor services and acts as a card program manager. Its platform creates customized payment cards that provide innovative payment experiences for their clients’ customers and end users.
Marqeta has emerged as a card issuing platform category leader in many disruptive verticals, including on-demand delivery, alternative lending, expense management, disbursement, digital remittances, and digital banks. Margeta’s solutions are even sought out by large financial institutions to improve their existing offerings and stay competitive with technology-focused new market entrants. Margeta detracted from performance despite achieving strong revenue growth with higher gross profitability and an expanded customer base in the third quarter. We believe the expiration of a lock up period and the company facing tough comparisons resulting from COVID-19 stimulus payments having boosted consumer spending contributed to the underperformance of Marqeta shares. Additionally, the still small footprints within the Margeta revenue base of crypto, truck brokerage and business-to-business clients may take time to scale.”
3. Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN)
Soros Fund Management’s Stake Value: $156,745,000
Percentage of Soros Fund Management’s 13F Portfolio: 2.89%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 61
Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) is a Massachusetts-based multinational computer software company that provides speech recognition and artificial intelligence software.
Soros Fund Management initially purchased a stake in Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) in Q1 2014, before disposing of the shares entirely in Q4 2014. After being inconsistent with its position in Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) over the years, the hedge fund acquired a stake in the company in Q2 2021, and boosted its position by 112% in Q3 2021, holding shares worth $156.7 million.
On February 7, Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) reported earnings for Q4 2021, posting a Q4 non-GAAP EPS of $0.08, and a revenue of $321.4 million, down 7.1% year-on-year.
Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) on April 11, 2021 entered into a merger agreement with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), through a wholly-owned subsidiary, agreed to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) for $56.00 per share in an all-cash transaction. As a result of the merger, Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) will cease to be a publicly traded company and the deal is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2022.
Among the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey in Q3 2021, 61 funds were bullish on Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN), with stakes totalling $4.8 billion, as compared to 72 funds in the preceding quarter, holding stakes in Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) worth $5.5 billion. Pentwater Capital Management held the largest stake in the company in Q3, with 17.5 million shares valued at roughly $967 million.
Here is what Rhizome Partners has to say about Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUAN) in its Q3 2021 investor letter:
“We also exited our small position in Nuance upon Microsoft’s acquisition. Nuance is a leader in voice recognition software, with dominant market share, and its speech-to-text product is the gold standard in radiology. In addition, by eliminating the need for note taking and allowing doctors to focus on patient care, Nuance could transform the way doctors treat patients. We built a 1% position in Nuance after attending its comprehensive investor day. Our view is that if Nuance can successfully grow its voice-recognition software in doctor’s offices, it could be worth multiples of our cost basis. Microsoft’s acquisition eliminated the multi-bagger upside but also partially validates the belief that Nuance is a high-quality technology company. We exited Nuance with a 62% gain in less than a year. This example is representative of the slight adjustments we made to our portfolio construction. We will allocate to small bets on technology and high-growth companies that could increase our exposure to “right tail” upside. Rest assured that our focus is still roughly 50% real estate, 30% high-quality companies trading at cheap multiples of free cash flow, and the rest in investments with the potential for growth and higher upside.”
2. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Soros Fund Management’s Stake Value: $159,026,000
Percentage of Soros Fund Management’s 13F Portfolio: 2.93%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 156
Soros Fund Management started building its position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in Q4 2015, and after selling off its stake over the years, the hedge fund held shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) consistently from Q2 2019 onwards. Heading into the third quarter of 2021, Soros Fund Management held 59,482 Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) shares, worth $159 million, representing 2.93% of the total 13F portfolio.
Publishing its Q4 results on February 1, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) posted earnings per share of $30.69, topping estimates by $3.41. Revenue over the period jumped 32.39% year-on-year to $75.33 billion, outperforming estimates by $3.50 billion.
On February 2, Stifel analyst Scott Devitt raised the price target on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to $3,500 from $3,200 and kept a Buy rating on the shares after the company reported what he called “another strong quarter”.
In Q3 2021, 156 hedge funds were bullish on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), with stakes totalling roughly $35 billion, up from 155 funds in the prior quarter, holding stakes in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) worth $33.79 billion. TCI Fund Management held the leading stake in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), with 2.95 million shares worth $7.8 billion.
Here is what Weitz Investment Management has to say about Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“A couple of other platform companies deserve a mention as well. Meta Platforms and Alphabet have both been under regulatory scrutiny that has affected their valuations. The threats of punitive action are real, but we have tried to be imaginative about how onerous any fines, rule changes or forced divestitures might be, and we believe that the five year outlook for each is well above average under almost any scenario. So, we include these two in the list of the under-appreciated.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Soros Fund Management’s Stake Value: $302,096,000
Percentage of Soros Fund Management’s 13F Portfolio: 5.57%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 242
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is a Washington-based e-commerce giant and multinational technology company that provides expertise in cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. In Q3 2021, Soros Fund Management held 91,961 shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), worth $302 million, representing 5.57% of the fund’s 13F investments.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) published its Q4 results on February 3, posting earnings per share of $27.75, beating estimates by $24.09. The company’s revenue for the period totaled $137.41 billion, missing estimates by $173.16 million.
Citi analyst Jason Bazinet on February 9 raised the price target on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) to $4,115 from $4,100 and kept a Buy rating on the shares after the company’s Q4 results. The analyst continues to see “ample room for growth” in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s business-to-business services.
In the third quarter of 2021, 242 hedge funds were bullish on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), with stakes totalling $42.5 billion, as compared to 271 funds holding stakes in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) worth over $60 billion in the quarter earlier. Fisher Asset Management held a prominent stake in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in Q3 2021, with 1.93 million shares worth $6.3 billion.
Here is what Weitz Investment Management, Inc. has to say about Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“Several “platform” companies thrived during COVID and have been very strong stocks. In 2021, their businesses continued to thrive, though their stock prices cooled off. Amazon continues to steamroll the competition and grow rapidly, but its stock ended the year about where it began.”
You can also take a look at 10 High Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire Lee Cooperman and 10 Stocks to Buy and Hold According to Bill Gates.
