Disney (DIS) and 4 Other Stocks Billionaire Phill Gross Was Buying Up in Q1.

2. Burlington Stores Inc (NYSE:BURL)

Value of Adage Capital Management’s 13F Position: $424 million

Number of Hedge Fund Shareholders: 38

Hedge fund ownership of Burlington Stores Inc (NYSE:BURL) remains around historical norms, though down by 17% since peaking in the third quarter of 2021. Adage Capital Management made a big investment in the company during the first quarter, building a BURL position that was 51% larger at the end of March than the one the fund held at the end of December.

Burlington Stores Inc (NYSE:BURL) had a disappointing Q1, widely missing both revenue and EPS estimates for the quarter. The off-price retailer earned $0.54 per share, missing estimates by $0.11, while its $1.93 billion in revenue was $120 million short of expectations. The second quarter isn’t shaping up to be much better, as Burlington Stores is guiding for just $0.18 to $0.31 in adjusted EPS compared to $1.50 in GAAP EPS a year earlier.

Cowen recently downgraded Burlington Stores Inc (NYSE:BURL) to ‘Market Perform’ from ‘Outperform’, while lowering its price target on the stock to $175 from $209. Even with shares off their peak by 50%, Cowen doesn’t believe they are “cheap enough to defend”, given that inflation is having an outsized impact on the company’s core low income consumers.