Meridian Funds, managed by ArrowMark Partners, released its “Meridian Contrarian Fund” second quarter 2023 investor letter. A copy of the same can be downloaded here. In the second quarter, the fund returned 4.17% net compared to a 5.23% return for the Russell 2500 Index. Furthermore, the fund underperformed its secondary benchmark, the Russell 2500 Value Index, which returned 4.37% during the same period. In addition, you can check the top 5 holdings of the fund to know its best picks in 2023.
Meridian Contrarian Fund highlighted stocks like Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) in the second quarter 2023 investor letter. Headquartered in Mechanicsville, Virginia, Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) operates bowling centers. On October 3, 2023, Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) stock closed at $9.75 per share. One-month return of Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) was -8.25%, and its shares lost 20.34% of their value over the last 52 weeks. Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion.
Meridian Contrarian Fund made the following comment about Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) in its Q2 2023 investor letter:
“Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) owns and operates nearly 350 bowling centers across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. In a highly fragmented market—it’s greater than six times larger than its nearest competitor—Bowlero is focused on revitalizing the bowling experience for family, corporate, and nightlife entertainment. Centered around bowling, arcades, other amusements, and better food and beverage offerings, Bowlero’s business was greatly diminished during the pandemic, which distorted its underlying profitability and cash flow when it went public via a SPAC in 2021. By early 2022, the valuation was deeply discounted and we invested on the belief that Bowlero could produce significantly higher profits than its bowling center competitors, allowing it to deploy cash to acquire and convert more centers to keep growing for years to come. During the quarter, the company reported strong results and announced its acquisition of the Lucky Strike chain, which operates 14 higher-end bowling centers in nine states. The stock declined, however, as management gave guidance that reflected a return to normal season demand patterns after two years of consistent sequential growth following the pandemic shutdowns. As we viewed the setback as temporary within the context of the continued growth and long-term value creation we believe the company will generate, we added to our position.”
Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 20 hedge fund portfolios held Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) at the end of second quarter which was 21 in the previous quarter.
We discussed Bowlero Corp. (NYSE:BOWL) in another article and shared Liberty Park Capital’s views on the company. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 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.
