Billionaire David Tepper Loves These Dividend Stocks

#3 Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN)

– Shares Owned by Appaloosa Management LP (as of September 30): 8.04 Million

– Value of Holding (as of September 30): $77.89 Million

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) lost half of its market capitalization in 2015. During the third quarter, when the stock declined by 55%, Appaloosa Management LP sold 45,000 shares of the company. However, seven more funds covered by Insider Monkey went long the stock during the same period, which suggests that the lucrative 4.40% annual dividend yield that the stock provides could be one of the reasons behind this increase in popularity. For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015, analysts expect Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) to report EPS of $0.25 on revenue of $2.44 billion, considerably lower than the EPS of $0.33 on revenue of $2.95 billion it posted for the same quarter last year. Billionaire Jim Simons‘ Renaissance Technologies initiated a stake in Huntsman Corporation during the third quarter and disclosed 1.28 million shares in its last 13F filing.

#2 Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR)

– Shares Owned by Appaloosa Management LP (as of September 30): 1.13 Million

– Value of Holding (as of September 30): $167 Million

After reaching their lifetime high of $217.11 in February last year, shares of Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) have registered a gradual decline and currently trade over 30% lower from that peak. However, this decline has helped in increasing the annual dividend yield of the company, which currently stands at 2.45%. Most analysts that cover the stock have a ‘Buy’ rating and believe that it will benefit from General Electric Company (NYSE:GE)’s recent announcement that it won’t be selling its home appliance business to Electrolux due to regulatory obstacles. Apart from Appaloosa Management LP, Edgar Wachenheim‘s Greenhaven Associates also increased its stake in Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) by 3% during the third quarter; it held almost 2.6 million shares of the company at the end of September.

#1 General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)

– Shares Owned by Appaloosa Management LP (as of September 30): 12.88 Million

– Value of Holding (as of September 30): $386.8 Million

General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) was not only Appaloosa Management LP’s top dividend stock pick, but also continued to remain its top stock pick, even though the fund reduced its stake in the company by 31% during the third quarter. The record sales the company registered in 2015 and vehicle sales in the US crossing the 17.5 million mark, didn’t help General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)’s stock much and it ended the year down by 2.38%. However, industry watchers and analysts believe that the stock will do well in the future because of the company’s focus on shareholder returns and improving product quality. On December 30, US district judge, Jesse Furman, rejected General Motors’ bid to dismiss the first “bellwether” case against it over the defective ignition switches in its vehicles, paving way for a January 11 trial. Warren Buffett‘s Berkshire Hathaway increased its stake in General Motors by 22% to million shares during the third quarter.

Disclosure: None