Baron Funds, an investment management company, released its “Baron Discovery Fund” first quarter 2023 investor letter. A copy of the same can be downloaded here. The fund was up 11.20% in the first quarter compared to the Russell 2000 Growth Index’s return of 6.07%. The strong performance of holdings in the Information Technology (IT), Industrials, and Consumer Discretionary sectors and the Fund’s higher exposure to the top-performing IT sector led the fund to outperform in the quarter. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2023.
Baron Discovery Fund highlighted stocks like Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) in the first quarter 2023 investor letter. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) is a conducted energy devices manufacturer that operates through Software and Sensors, and TASER. On May 15, 2023, Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) stock closed at $203.47 per share. One-month return of Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) was -10.57%, and its shares gained 110.20% of their value over the last 52 weeks. Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) has a market capitalization of $14.825 billion.
Baron Discovery Fund made the following comment about Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:
“Shares of Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON), a public safety-focused technology company, rose during the quarter following a robust earnings report and a favorable long-term outlook which raised revenue guidance, beating investor expectations. Notable growth in Axon’s higher-margin cloud software business and Sensors segment reflects strong demand for the company’s digital evidence management, productivity, and real-time operations platforms, as well as Axon Fleet in-car cameras. The company is also targeting reducing costs and share dilution, as well as enhancing free-cash-flow conversion in the coming years. All of this offers dramatic upside potential. With line of sight to more than 20% sustained revenue growth, an improving margin profile with the growth of software solutions, and a management team that has demonstrated an ability to innovate quickly, sell to customers, and manage costs effectively, Axon has solidified itself as a best-in-class company and a compelling investment in the public safety space.
We reduced our position in Axon Enterprise, Inc. a bit after the stock moved up meaningfully during the quarter, purely for risk management purposes. We continue to think this is a fantastic company with great long-term prospects.”
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Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 38 hedge fund portfolios held Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) at the end of the fourth quarter which was 27 in the previous quarter.
We discussed Axon Enterprise, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXON) in another article and shared Renaissance Investment Management’s views on the company. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2023 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
