We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire D.E. Shaw. In this article, we are going to take a look at where CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) stands against the other stocks.
Equity market pricing is never perfect due to supply and demand imbalances, emotional reactions, and errors. Billionaire investor David Elliot Shaw excels at detecting and exploiting these inefficiencies to generate shareholder value. Unlike most hedge fund managers who rely on intuition, Shaw uses sophisticated mathematical models and algorithms for investment decisions. Over the years, he has developed software and hardware to gain an edge in investment opportunities.
Born in 1951, David E. Shaw became a successful billionaire scientist and hedge fund manager. After earning a PhD from Stanford in 1980, he founded D.E. Shaw & Co. in 1988 with six employees and $28 million in capital. The hedge fund has averaged a 12.5% return since inception, with only one down year. Shaw’s firm uses powerful computers and advanced algorithms for quick market responses and risk management, returning over $51 billion to investors. Likewise, it generated a net return of 11.88% between 2001 and 2011. While Shaw’s firm was down by 9% at the height of the financial crisis in 2008, it bounced back to profitability with a 21% return in 2009.
READ ALSO: 10 Best Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire David Einhorn and Billionaire Paul Singer’s Top 12 Long-Term Stock Picks.
D.E. Shaw is expanding and launching new funds. In 2023, they raised money for D.E. Shaw Alkali Fund VI, the newest in their Alkali group. By November 2024, they had secured $1 billion for this fund, focusing on corporate debt, structured credit, and synthetic securitizations.
Last year, the firm also raised $1.1 billion for two new private investment vehicles: D.E. Shaw Voltaic Fund and D.E. Shaw Diopter Fund. In June 2024, D.E. Shaw announced it was raising its second fund in 16 months to target bank capital deals. They filed a private placement notice for D.E. Shaw Diopter Fund II, but the amount wasn’t disclosed.
Bloomberg reported that D.E. Shaw’s largest hedge fund, the D.E. Shaw Composite Fund, gained 9.6% in 2023, outperforming the HFR Global Hedge Fund Index, which was up about 2.5% through December 15. Reuters added that D.E. Shaw’s macro-oriented fund, the Oculus Fund, gained 7.8% in 2023, beating its macroeconomic peers. According to Bloomberg, the Oculus Fund has never had a negative year since it started.
Diversification is another vital arsenal that D.E. Shaw & Co. relies on to spread risk and reduce market volatility. The firm is highly diversified with a portfolio value of about $116.49 billion. While technology stocks account for the most significant share in the equity market at 24.6%, the hedge fund also has stakes in Services at 17.5% and the financial sector at 7.7%. In addition to diversifying holdings, Shaw relies on a multi-strategy approach to squeeze optimum value in the market.
Billionaire D.E. Shaw suggests investing in resilient companies, even as the US Federal Reserve signals fewer interest rate cuts in 2025. Despite three cuts reducing the benchmark rate to 4.25%-4.5%, economic slowdown concerns persist, especially in the labor market. Job growth is mainly in government and health care, while growth in manufacturing, business, and professional services has stagnated.
Our Methodology
To make the list of best stocks to buy according to billionaire D.E. Shaw, we scanned D.E. Shaw & Co investment portfolio. We then settled on the hedge fund’s largest holdings analyzing why they stand out and the number of hedge funds that hold stakes in them. Finally, we ranked the stocks in ascending order based on D.E. Shaw & Co stake value.
At Insider Monkey, we are obsessed with the stocks that hedge funds pile into. The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
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CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA)
D.E. Shaw & Co’s Stake Value: $637.31 Million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 32
CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) is a company that operates a chain of restaurants in the US. It is turning out to be one of the biggest surprises in the restaurant industry. Its share price has more than doubled after a 188% rally year to date. The rally has come on the company delivering blowout growth in revenues and earnings nearly every quarter since going public in mid-2023.
CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) has become dominant in the expanding Mediterranean food market by leveraging its distinctive value proposition to appeal to a broad clientele. This accomplishment demonstrates CAVA’s capacity to change dining preferences and establish Mediterranean food as a powerful force in the restaurant sector.
In the third quarter, CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) delivered an 18.1% increase in same-store sales, resulting in a 39% increase in revenues to $241.5 million. Earnings before taxes were up 69% to $33.5 million as net income jumped 165% to $18 million. The robust sales growth comes as the restaurant chain continues to expand its footprint with 11 new locations, bringing its total locations to 352.
In its prospectus last year, CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) stated that it has the potential to open more than 1,000 restaurants in the US by 2032. Such a move would strengthen the company’s revenue base by allowing it to target new niche markets.
Overall CAVA ranks 8th on our list of the best stocks to buy according to Billionaire D. E. Shaw. While we acknowledge the potential of CAVA as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that under the radar AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CAVA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
