Ariel Investments, an investment management company, released its “Ariel Appreciation Fund” fourth-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Global markets in 2024 exceeded forecasts, primarily due to the overwhelming success of the “magnificent seven,” or mega-cap technology stocks. Despite the concentration of gains, the optimism was fueled by the U.S. election results, solid earnings growth, and a healthy labor market. Against this backdrop, the fund returned -0.53% in the fourth quarter compared to Russell Midcap Value Index’s -1.75% returns, and the Russell Midcap Index’s +0.62% gain. The fund traded +6.30% higher, over the trailing one-year period compared to +13.07% and +15.34% returns for the indexes. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.
In its fourth quarter 2024 investor letter, Ariel Appreciation Fund emphasized stocks such as Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA). Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) is a healthcare, pharmacy, and retail company that operates through U.S. Retail Pharmacy, International, and U.S. Healthcare segments. Over the past month, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) shares experienced a return of 7.27%, and they have lost 56.64% of value over the last 52 weeks. On February 4, 2024, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) stock closed at $9.89 per share, with a market capitalization of $8.546 billion.
Ariel Appreciation Fund stated the following regarding Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“Also in the quarter, we re-initiated our position in retail drugstore operator, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) following the wash sale period for tax loss selling. Recent news reports suggest there is potential interest by a PE firm to take WBA private. We believe the strategic value of WBA’s nationwide footprint and future growth opportunities has substantial upside at today’s valuation. We did not exit any positions in the quarter.”
A pharmacist discussing the health benefits of a prescription medication with a customer.
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 33 hedge fund portfolios held Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) at the end of the third quarter which was 35 in the previous quarter. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:WBA) first fiscal quarter 2025 results were better than expectations (see the details here). While we acknowledge the potential of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that 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 as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
In another article we discussed Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) and shared non-tech AI opportunities amid DeepSeek selloff. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q3 2024 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.