In this article, we discuss 5 tech stocks to buy now according to Barry Dargan’s Intermede Investment Partners. If you want to read our detailed analysis of Dargan’s history, investment philosophy, and hedge fund performance, go directly to 10 Tech Stocks To Buy Now According To Barry Dargan’s Intermede Investment Partners.
5. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE)
Intermede Investment Partners’ Stake Value: $176,253,000
Intermede Investment Partners’ 13F Portfolio: 3.62%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 262
Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) is a Delaware-based software firm based in the United States. On April 29, Exane BNP Paribas analyst Stefan Slowinski assigned an Outperform rating to Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) and a $570 price target.
Intermede Investment Partners also strengthened its position in Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) by buying 114,586 additional shares in Q4 2021. This makes their stake in Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) total 310,819 shares worth $176.25 million.
Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) was found in the public stock portfolios of 94 hedge funds at the end of December 2021, compared to 95 funds the previous quarter, according to the database of Insider Monkey. Fisher Asset Management is the biggest stakeholder of Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) as of the first quarter of 2022, reducing its stake in the company by 3%, holding 6.54 million shares worth almost $2.98 billion.
Here is what Richie Capital Group has to say about Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) in its Q2 2021 investor letter:
“Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) (up 24.8%) – In the last 15 years, Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) has transformed itself into a software behemoth, more than tripling its revenue since 2010. The company is famous for its namesake PDF-reader and photo-editing software Photoshop. However, Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) sells a full suite of software products through a recurring subscription model. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) transitioned from selling boxed software to recurring subscriptions in 2013 and revenues have grown consistently since. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) achieved $13B in revenue in 2020 with 88% Gross Margins.”
4. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM)
Intermede Investment Partners’ Stake Value: $219,797,000
Intermede Investment Partners’ 13F Portfolio: 4.52%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 72
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) manufactures and sells integrated circuits and semiconductor wafer devices. As of Q4 2021, Intermede Investment Partners boosted its stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) by 6%, holding 1.83 million shares worth approximately $219.80 million.
Hans Engel of Erste Group lowered Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) from Buy to Hold on April 14. While Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) benefited from its strong market position, Engel warned investors that sales and profit forecasts for 2022 declined due to a global economic slowdown.
In Q4 2021, fund managers added to their Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) holdings. There were 72 hedge funds in our database that held stakes in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to 67 funds in the third quarter.
Wedgewood Partners, an investment management firm, in its first-quarter 2022 investor letter, mentioned Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM). Here is what the fund said:
“Taiwan Semiconductor pulled back on geopolitical concerns and periodic market fears about the end of the “cycle” in semiconductors. First, we think the Company might be one of the most – if not the most – important Companies in the world. Taiwan Semiconductor has a near-monopoly on semiconductor processing at advanced nodes, which makes it irreplaceable to customers such as Apple, AMD, NVIDIA, Mediatek, Amazon, and even Intel. Second, much less important manufacturers have more direct geopolitical risk than Taiwan Semiconductor, yet they trade at substantial premiums – both multiple and market cap. For example, Tesla is a heavy manufacturer of only about 1 million automobiles with significant production capacity located in the heart of China, yet it trades at double the market cap of Taiwan Semiconductor. Third, while it is hard to know when the current semiconductor “cycle” will slow or end, we see very few signs of it, as Taiwan Semiconductor continues to generate bookings well in excess of its current capacity – unlike any previous cycle. Taiwan Semiconductor traded to levels that are much too pessimistic given its competitive positioning and opportunity for growth driven by a more robust semiconductor cycle, driven by high-performance computing. As such, we added to our position during the quarter.”
3. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Intermede Investment Partners’ Stake Value: $228,217,000
Intermede Investment Partners’ 13F Portfolio: 4.69%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 134
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) develops, manufactures, and sells smartphones, laptops, tablets, wearables, and accessories. Insider Monkey’s database showed that 134 hedge funds had stakes in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, up from 120 funds the previous quarter.
Rosenblatt analyst Barton Crockett decreased his price target on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to $168 from $184 on May 2 and maintained a Neutral rating on the stock. Crockett, who was unsure when China would no longer be a Covid risk for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), said its March quarter report was encouraging, but it was plagued by fears of more supply disruptions in the June quarter.
In the fourth quarter of 2021, Barry Dargan’s Intermede Investment Partners owned 1.29 million Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares, worth over $228.22 million, representing 4.69% of the total 13F securities. Fisher Asset Management is Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s largest shareholder, with shares worth $11.17 billion as of Q1 2022.
Here is what Berkshire Hathaway has to say about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:
“Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) – our runner-up Giant as measured by its year end market value – is a different sort of holding. Here, our ownership is a mere 5.55%, up from 5.39% a year earlier. That increase sounds like small potatoes. But consider that each 0.1% of Apple’s 2021 earnings amounted to $100 million. We spent no Berkshire funds to gain our accretion. Apple’s repurchases did the job. It’s important to understand that only dividends from Apple are counted in the GAAP earnings Berkshire reports – and last year, Apple paid us $785 million of those. Yet our “share” of Apple’s earnings amounted to a staggering $5.6 billion. Much of what the company retained was used to repurchase Apple shares, an act we applaud. Tim Cook, Apple’s brilliant CEO, quite properly regards users of Apple products as his first love, but all of his other constituencies benefit from Tim’s managerial touch as well.”
2. Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN)
Intermede Investment Partners’ Stake Value: $230,291,000
Intermede Investment Partners’ 13F Portfolio: 4.74%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50
Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) is a global professional services firm established in Ireland, specializing in information technology consulting and services. It has operations in 55 countries and serves clients in over 120 countries. The Fortune Global 100 and more than 75% of the Fortune Global 500 companies are among Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN)’s clientele.
Intermede Investment Partners has held a stake in Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) since Q4 2015, and as of the fourth quarter of 2021, the hedge fund owned 555,520 shares of the company, worth $230.29 million. Intermede Investment Partners strengthened its position in Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) by 6% in Q4 2021, and the stock represented 4.74% of the total portfolio.
In the fourth quarter of 2021, 50 hedge funds monitored by Insider Monkey were bullish on Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN), compared to 56 funds the previous quarter. In Q4, the total stakes held were $5.12 billion.
Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) bought akzente, a well-known sustainability consultant based in Munich, Germany, on May 2 for an undisclosed sum. Baird analyst David Koning boosted his price objective on Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) from $360 to $378 on April 8 and maintained a Neutral rating on the stock.
ClearBridge Investments, in its Q4 2021 investor letter, mentioned Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN). Here is what the fund has to say:
“We were quite active during the quarter, leveraging volatility to add 10 new names to the portfolio while exiting seven others. Among our new purchases was Accenture. Ireland-based Accenture is the leading IT professional services company that offers the full life cycle of IT services including consulting, implementation and outsourcing. It is a key partner of organizations going through digital transformation and cloud adoption and we view the company as an agnostic way to gain exposure to the compressed digital transformation cycle that is occurring across all industries post COVID-19.”
1. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Intermede Investment Partners’ Stake Value: $294,845,000
Intermede Investment Partners’ 13F Portfolio: 6.06%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 158
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is the parent company of Google, the world’s most popular search engine. Barry Dargan held 101,896 shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in Q4 2021, worth about $294.85 million, representing 6.06% of the total 13F securities. The hedge fund slashed its stake in the firm by 4% in the fourth quarter of 2021.
On April 27, Guggenheim analyst Michael Morris reduced his price target on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to $3,000 from $3,350 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares. He reduced his expectations for 2022 to account for new hurdles, such as stronger comparisons, the influence of Russia, and unfavorable foreign exchange consequences. According to Insider Monkey’s Q4 data, 158 hedge funds were bullish on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), amounting to $36.63 billion, up from 156 funds in the earlier quarter, worth $34.96 billion.
Baron Funds, an asset management firm, mentioned Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its first quarter 2022 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“We have modestly reduced the size of our position in Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (from 6.5% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021 to 5.3% as of the end of the first quarter of 2022), after the stock rallied 64% in 2021 and continued outperforming during the first quarter, declining just 3%.”
You can also take a peek at 10 Stocks to Buy According to Joshua Pearl’s Hickory Lane Capital Management and 10 Stocks to Buy Now According to James Katz’s Humankind Investments.
