Five Retailers Billionaires Are Bullish On

#2. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

– Billionaires with long positions as of March 31: 8

– Aggregate value of billionaires’ holdings as of March 31: $1.19 Billion

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) received some love from the billionaires followed by our team during the first quarter of 2016, with the number of those with stakes in Costco increasing to eight from six quarter-over-quarter. Nonetheless, the aggregate value of their positions shrunk by nearly 3% sequentially to $1.19 billion, partially due to a 2% decline in the value of Costco shares. Costco’s stock reached an all-time high of $169.73 in December and the company seem to be on track to surpass that record again this year. Costco shares are down by 3% year-to-date although the drop was offset by a 7% gain registered in the past month. The primary feature that makes Costco Wholesale stand out in the entire retail sectors is that the warehouse club focuses on its membership model, so the company doesn’t need to spend vast amounts of capital on advertising. Costco has around 44.6 million members across the globe and the chain does offer customers a great pool of reasons to buy the $55-membership. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway owned 4.33 million shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) on March 31.

#1. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

– Billionaires with long positions as of March 31: 8

– Aggregate value of billionaires’ holdings as of March 31: $5.34Billion

The so-called “billionaire” hedge fund sentiment towards Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT) did not change during the January-to-March period, as the number of billionaire asset managers from our system with equity positions in the company remained at eight. However, the overall value of their holdings inched up by almost 5% quarter-over-quarter to $5.34 billion, mainly due to a 13% increase in the share price of Wal-Mart’s stock. Therefore, some billionaires were actually reducing their exposure to world’s largest retailer during the first quarter. The multinational retail giant’s comparable sales have increased seven consecutive quarters, thanks to six straight quarters of positive traffic. Investors are well aware that Wal-Mart’s biggest threat is eCommerce giant Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), but the world’s number one retailer has been channeling capital toward expanding its presence in the online space as well. Wal-Mart plans to invest $2 billion into e-commerce over the next two years by supporting initiatives such as mobile wallet called Wal-Mart Pay, and an online grocery pickup service, to name just a few. Wal-Mart shares are up by 16% so far in 2016. The Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett, also owns 55.24 million shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT) as of the end of March.

Disclosure: None