Ariel Investments, an investment management firm, published its “Ariel Focus Fund” third-quarter 2021 investor letter – a copy of which can be downloaded here. Ariel Focus Fund returned -4.71% in the third quarter, trailing the Russell 1000 Value Index which lost -0.78%, and the S&P 500 Index which gained +0.58%. Year-to-date, Ariel Focus Fund has earned +15.44% compared to +16.14% for the Russell 1000 Value Index and +15.92% for the S&P 500. You can take a look at the fund’s top 5 holdings to have an idea about their best picks for 2021.
Ariel Focus Fund, in its Q3 2021 investor letter, mentioned The Mosaic Company (NYSE: MOS) and discussed its stance on the firm. The Mosaic Company is a Tampa, Florida-based mining company with a $13.5 billion market capitalization. MOS delivered a 58.50% return since the beginning of the year, while its 12-month returns are up by 57.88%. The stock closed at $36.47per share on December 16, 2021.
Here is what Ariel Focus Fund has to say about The Mosaic Company in its Q3 2021 investor letter:
“Our third quarter contributors generally fit this “happy family” description. Mosaic Company is the largest contributor to performance this year as well as our biggest holding as we go to print. The company returned +12.20% in the quarter and +56.16% so far this year. We have long believed Mosaic is well positioned to help the world feed its 7 billion people with a better diet amid finite agricultural resources. The company’s nutrients, particularly phosphates and potash, are key to improving yields on the limited number of global acres devoted to farming. Mosaic believes up to 60% of the yield on many crops is determined by the appropriate application of nutrients. For this reason, the company has remained focused on expanding its leadership position in this core fertilizer business. For several years, this concentrated effort did not show results. But in 2021, Mosaic’s focus began to pay off. Strong U.S. crop prices as well as growing transportation costs for imported fertilizer from overseas mines have led to improved earnings expectations. Last December, analysts showed a mean estimate for Mosaic 2021 EPS of $1.43. Today, those same analysts expect the company to earn $4.67! Estimates for 2022 EPS have also increased dramatically from $2.10 as of December 2020 to $4.99 today. We believe Mosaic will also continue to benefit from global inflation.”
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Based on our calculations, The Mosaic Company (NYSE: MOS) was not able to clinch a spot in our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. MOS was in 40 hedge fund portfolios at the end of the third quarter of 2021, compared to 43 funds in the previous quarter. The Mosaic Company (NYSE: MOS) delivered an 8.06% return in the past 3 months.
Earlier this year, we also shared another hedge fund’s views on MOS in another article. You can find more than 100 investor letters from hedge funds and prominent investors on our hedge fund investor letters 2021 Q3 page.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
