Artisan Partners, an investment management company, released its “Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund” fourth quarter 2023 investor letter. A copy of the same can be downloaded here. In the fourth quarter, its Investor Class fund ARTQX returned 11.21%, Advisor Class fund APDQX posted a return of 11.20%, and Institutional Class fund APHQX returned 11.17%, compared to a 12.11% return for the Russell Midcap Value Index. For the full year, ARTQX, APDQX, and APHQX returned 18.15%, 18.25%, and 18.35%, respectively, compared to 12.71% for the index. The portfolio did well in the market with double-digit gains but trailed the Russell Midcap Value Index in Q4. However, it outperformed in the prior three quarters, leading to strong results compared to the index and peer group for 2023. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2023.
Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund featured stocks like Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) in the fourth quarter 2023 investor letter. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) is an online travel company. On March 26, 2024, Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) stock closed at $136.62 per share. One-month return of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) was 0.80%, and its shares gained 43.77% of their value over the last 52 weeks. Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) has a market capitalization of $18.62 billion.
Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund stated the following regarding Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) in its fourth quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Our top Q4 contributor was Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE), a leading online travel agency. Shares soared after the company reported better-than-expected financial results driven by booming travel demand and announced a new $5 billion stock buyback program that equates to about 40% of the company’s market cap over the next 2 to 3 years. Gross bookings were up high-single-digit percentages year over year, representing a sequential acceleration from Q2’s 5% growth rate, while earnings growth came in better than expected due to continued margin expansion (+110bps y/y). In July, the company launched One Key, its new combined rewards program across its Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo brands, and the program has seen solid early adoption, with 82 million members already signed up. Expedia’s business model is highly attractive. As one of only two globally scaled online travel agencies (the other is Booking Holdings, which is held in our large-cap portfolio), it has a wide economic moat. Based on our estimates of earnings power, shares continue to trade cheaply at just ~12X.”
People interacting with a travel website, searching for the perfect destination.
Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. At the end of the fourth quarter, Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) was held by 65 hedge fund portfolios, compared to 52 in the previous quarter, according to our database.
We discussed Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) in another article and shared the list of mid-cap tech companies in the US. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q4 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.
