In this article, we discuss the 5 stocks billionaire Mario Gabelli is dumping in 2022. You can see some more stocks sold by GAMCO Investors in the first quarter of 2022 by clicking Billionaire Mario Gabelli is Dumping These 10 Stocks in 2022.
5. Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL)
Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) is an American company that provides sustainable aluminum packaging solutions for beverage, personal care and household products customers, as well as aerospace and other technologies and services to commercial and governmental customers. Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors pulled out of Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) in Q1 2022, selling off his hedge fund’s Q4 2021 stakes of $0.25 million in the company.
Earlier this May, Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) announced an agreement to repurchase approximately $300 million of its outstanding common stock in a privately negotiated, accelerated stock repurchase transaction with Mizuho Markets Americas LLC, using cash on hand and available borrowings. This transaction will reduce the company’s outstanding common stock by a total of approximately 4.3 million shares.
Deutsche Bank analyst Kyle White on May 9 lowered the price target on Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) to $91 from $98 and kept a Buy rating on the shares following the company’s Q1 results.
According to Insider Monkey’s Q1 data, 37 hedge funds were bullish on Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL), up from 32 funds in the prior quarter. The total stakes held in the first quarter amounted to $814.7 million, compared to $956 million in the earlier quarter. Greg Poole’s Echo Street Capital Management held a prominent position in the company, with more than 1 million shares worth $100.2 million.
Here is what ClearBridge Investments had to say about Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL) in their third-quarter 2021 investor letter:
“Ball, the largest manufacturer of recyclable aluminum beverage cans in North America, bucked headwinds for the materials sector with strong quarterly results and was supported by contracts indicative of further growth.”
4. Shell Plc (NYSE:SHEL)
Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
Shell Plc (NYSE:SHEL) is a British multinational oil and gas company that was formed in 1907 through the merger of Royal Dutch Petroleum Company of the Netherlands and The “Shell” Transport and Trading Company of the United Kingdom. Operating in more than 70 countries, the company stands as a dominant player in the oil and gas market.
Although GAMCO Investors removed its position in Shell Plc (NYSE:SHEL) during the first quarter of 2022, things are looking bright for the company. On June 9, Credit Suisse analyst Amy Wong initiated coverage of Shell Plc (NYSE:SHEL) with an Outperform rating and 3,000 GBp price target. According to Wong, Shell Plc (NYSE:SHEL)’s energy transition strategy stands out as the most progressive in terms of decarbonization and for generating strong cash flow that supports shareholder distributions in the near and medium term.
At the end of the first quarter of 2022, 37 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $5.6 billion in Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL), compared to 41 in the previous quarter worth $2.6 billion. Among the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Washington-based investment firm Fisher Asset Management is a leading shareholder in Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL), with 19.5 million shares worth more than $1 billion.
Here is what GMO LLC has to say about Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) in its Q1 2022 investor letter:
“The market is simply not valuing resource companies at reasonable levels given any plausible base case for how the world might play out, in our opinion. With oil prices up around 65% and natural gas prices up hundreds of percent since the beginning of 2020, Shell (NYSE:SHEL), a bellwether for the oil and gas industry, is more or less flat. With the movement in oil and gas prices, one would have expected Shell’s stock price to surge. It didn’t, however, leaving Shell at very attractive valuation levels. At commodity prices as of the end of the first quarter, Shell would be cranking out free cash flow yields of 22-23% for the next few years according to our models.”
3. Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA)
Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 41
Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) is an American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that focuses on transformational therapeutics based on messenger RNA and vaccines for the treatment of infectious diseases, immuno-oncology, rare diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and auto-immune diseases.
On May 31, Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) and The Takeda Pharmaceutical Company announced plans to transfer the marketing authorization in Japan for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine Spikevax. As of August 1, Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) will assume responsibility for all Spikevax activities, including import, local regulatory, development, quality assurance and commercialization, while The Takeda Pharmaceutical Company will continue to provide distribution support under the current national vaccination campaign for Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA)’s COVID-19 vaccines for a transitional period.
Earlier this May, Piper Sandler analyst Edward Tenthoff lowered his price target on Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) to $214 from $348 based on “pipeline adjustments reflecting current market conditions” but maintained an Overweight rating on the shares. The analyst adjusted his model to value Spikevax at $41.3 billion on decreased expected 2022 peak revenues of $20.65 billion.
The number of hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owning stakes in Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) stood at 41 in Q1 2022, declining from 43 in the previous quarter. The total value of these holdings is more than $3.80 billion, down from $3.89 billion in Q4 2021. Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management is the biggest stakeholder of Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) in Q1 2022, with 6.93 million shares worth approximately $1.19 billion.
Carillon Tower Advisers mentioned Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA) in its Q3 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Moderna is a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines. The stock proved to be an impressive contributor once again in the quarter, as investors continue to evaluate the potential for future growth driven primarily by the firm’s revolutionary COVID-19 vaccine. Strong global demand for the vaccine may persist for the foreseeable future in order to maintain immunity as well as provide protection against any additional future variants. The potential for the firm’s mRNA technology to be used in a number of other use cases, specifically influenza, could also provide an additional tailwind for future growth.”
2. Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO)
Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 45
Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) is an American developer and manufacturer of specialized technological products for the life science research and clinical diagnostics markets. Shares of the laboratory company have dropped by 34.46%, and as of Q1 2022, GAMCO Investors completely sold its stakes in the company.
On May 2, Citi analyst Patrick Donnelly lowered the price target on Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) to $750 from $800 and kept a Buy rating on the shares. Although the analyst dropped the price target to reflect lower peer multiples, he notes that the company posted a revenue beat in Q1 driven by healthy growth in the life sciences segment.
According to Insider Monkey’s database, 45 hedge funds were bullish on Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) with stakes worth $1.54 billion at the end of Q1 2022. This is compared to 38 positions in Q4 2021 with stakes worth $1.37 billion. Paul Marshall and Ian Wace’s Marshall Wace LLP was the company’s leading shareholder, with 467,343 shares worth more than $263.2 million.
1. Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY)
Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 67
Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) is an American company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration in the United States, and the Middle East as well as petrochemical manufacturing in the United States, Canada, and Chile. Shares of the oil and gas company have soared by 106.33% in the past six months.
Although billionaire Mario Gabelli discarded Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) from his Q1 portfolio, the company has been thriving in the recent market environment. On May 31, Mizuho analyst Vincent Lovaglio raised the price target on Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) to $89 from $85 and kept a Buy rating on the shares. According to the analyst’s notes, global energy undersupply has continued to drive energy commodity prices higher, while logistics and supply chain constraints, broader macro uncertainty and a shift in corporate behavior have pushed back the growth response.
For the first quarter of 2022, Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) posted an EPS of $2.12, beating market estimates by $0.09. Revenue for the quarter came in at $8.53 billion, showing a year-on-year growth of 55.7%, and also exceeded analysts’ forecasts by $473.1 million.
Overall, 67 hedge funds were stakeholders in the company at the close of Q1 2022, up from 58 hedge funds in the preceding quarter. Of these, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway stands as the firm’s biggest shareholder as of Q1, with more than 136.37 million shares worth approximately $7.73 billion.
Smead Capital Management talked about Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) in its Q3 2021 investor letter. Here is what the investment management firm said:
“Oil stocks dominated our winners for the quarter. We showed that we have unlimited ability to tempt fate by buying into Occidental Petroleum (OXY) this year after it was our biggest loser of 2020. It gained 16.64% during the third quarter.”
You can also take a look at 10 Stocks Warren Buffett is Selling and 10 Best Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire Mario Gabelli.
