We recently compiled a list of the 8 Stocks Jeff Bezos is Buying. In this article, we are going to take a look at where GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL) stands against the other stocks Jeff Bezos is buying.
‘We are Famously Unprofitable’
Jeff Bezos is a name closely tied to Amazon the company he reportedly founded in 1994 during a cross-country road trip. What began as a modest online bookstore has since evolved into a massive e-commerce giant, outpacing competitors and leading many consumer markets. It went public in 1997, prompting market analysts to question whether it could compete once traditional retailers launched their own e-commerce platforms. Just two years later, the start-up not only kept pace but surged ahead, establishing itself as a leader in online retail. While many dot-coms from the early ’90s failed, Bezos’ company thrived, becoming a dominant force in e-commerce and technology. Its success is largely attributed to its unwavering focus on customer experience. The company prioritizes making shopping fast and convenient, with every decision rooted in its customer-centric philosophy.
In the 24 years since Jeff Bezos made his famous statement on BBC Newsnight, the company has solidified its dominance in both ecommerce and cloud computing. The company generated $574.8 billion in net sales revenue in 2023 and has expanded into various sectors beyond retail, including film and television production, a streaming service, full-service grocery stores, and AI assistant technology. It has also grown through strategic acquisitions, integrating companies like Twitch Interactive, Whole Foods, and Audible into its ecosystem.
Of course, the tech icon didn’t just stick with one venture. In 2000, Bezos founded Blue Origin, an aerospace company focused on developing technologies to reduce the cost of space travel, aiming to make it accessible to paying customers. For its first 15 years, the company operated quietly. However, in August 2019, NASA selected Blue Origin as one of 13 companies to collaborate on 19 technology projects aimed at reaching the moon and Mars. Despite this achievement, Blue Origin faces stiff competition from industry giants like Elon Musk’s SpaceX in the heavy-lift rocket launch market. That said, the company has been making significant advancements in the industry. Earlier this September, Blue Origin successfully test-fired the second stage of its next-generation rocket, the New Glenn. The 15-second test was a success, with both the engine and various subsystems performing as expected, thus marking a key milestone for the company in its bid to reach Earth’s orbit. While Blue Origin has launched rockets 26 times, including eight suborbital flights with space tourists, all of its previous missions have been suborbital.
All in all, becoming a billionaire is something not many can claim, with just 2,781 individuals out of nearly 8 billion people reaching that milestone. Even after stepping down as CEO in 2021, Jeff Bezos continues to invest in various ventures through his family office, Bezos Expeditions. While many of these are startups or privately held companies, there are also publicly traded options available. For those, interested in following the tech icon’s investment moves, we will explore these stocks that Bezos is backing.
Our Methodology
We examined the investments of Bezos Expeditions, Jeff Bezos’ family office, to identify key companies he’s invested in. All selected firms are publicly traded, and the stocks are ranked in ascending order based on hedge fund sentiment as of Q2 2024, as tracked by Insider Monkey.
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).
A laboratory filled with beakers and flasks, signifying the biotechnology industry.
GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 32
GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL), a biotechnology company based in Menlo Park, California, was originally a startup and former subsidiary of Illumina. It focuses on developing early cancer screening tests for asymptomatic individuals.
Following its separation from Illumina, GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL) expects to record a significant goodwill impairment charge, estimated at $888.9 million, tied to the application of pushdown accounting after its acquisition by Illumina. Additionally, the company foresees a large impairment charge for its in-process research and development (IPR&D) assets, valued at $560.0 million.
In August of this year, GRAIL, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRAL) reported its first results as an independent public company. Q2 2024 revenue reached $32.0 million, marking a 43% year-over-year increase, although the company posted a net loss of $1.6 billion for the quarter, including amortization and impairment of acquisition-related intangibles. Gross loss came in at $17.9 million, while non-GAAP adjusted gross profit stood at $16.0 million, and non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA was $139.4 million.
As of Q2 2024, 32 hedge funds rerported holding shares of the biotech company, with a total stake value coming in at $91.6 million.
Overall GRAL ranks 4th on our list of the stocks Jeff Bezos is buying. While we acknowledge the potential of GRAL as an investment, we believe certain deeply undervalued AI stocks offer greater prospects for higher returns in a shorter period. If you’re seeking an AI stock with even more promise than those on our list and trading 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.
