In this article, we will look at billionaire Ken Fisher’s top 5 growth stock picks. If you want to explore similar stocks, you can also read “That Which Drops the Most, Bounces the Most”: Ken Fisher’s Top 10 Growth Stock Picks.
5. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $2,586,996,000
Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 1.83%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 116
On September 21, Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) announced a strategic collaboration with leading insurance-tech company Zywave. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) and Zywave will jointly develop an industry-leading CRM platform for the insurance industry which will include real-time insurance quoting and policy management services among others.
Wall Street sees upside to Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM). On September 15, Guggenheim analyst John DiFucci reiterated his $150 price target on Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) and upgraded the stock to Neutral from Sell. On September 19, Raymond James analyst Brian Peterson reiterated his Strong Buy rating and $225 price target on Saleforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) and added the stock to Raymond James’ “Analyst Current Favorite” List.
Insider Monkey spotted Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) on 116 hedge fund portfolios. The total stakes of these hedge funds amounted to $7.90 billion. As of June 30, Fisher Asset Management’s stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) sits at $2.58 billion. The investment covers 1.83% of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio.
Here is what Vulcan Value Partners had to say about Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in its first-quarter 2022 investor letter:
“Salesforce.com Inc. is the dominant provider of customer relationship management software and technology. Salesforce has high retention rates, pricing power, high free cash flow, and a competitive moat. The company continues to execute well. Margins decreased slightly during the fourth quarter but continue to be on path for material expansion over the long term. Salesforce is seeing increased spending as employees are returning to the office, and we believe the global pandemic has only improved its prospects.”
4. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $4,562,868,000
Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.22%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 153
On July 27, Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak raised his price target on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to $145 from $140 and maintained a buy-side Overweight rating on the shares. On August 3, Tigress Financial analyst Ivan Feinseth raised his price target on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) to $186 from $183 and reiterated a Strong Buy rating on the shares.
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) is a cash-rich, high-margin, and low-risk growth stock. The company has free cash flows of $65 billion and the stock has a trailing twelve-month operating margin of 29.65% and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.
According to Insider Monkey’s database, 153 hedge funds were bullish on Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) at the close of Q2 2022. The total stakes of these hedge funds amounted to $22.29 billion. Of those, $4.56 billion were of Fisher Asset Management. The investment covers 3.22% of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio.
Here is what Baron Funds had to say about Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its second-quarter 2022 investor letter:
“Alphabet Inc. is the parent company of Google, the world’s largest search and online advertising company. Shares of Alphabet declined 21.6% in the quarter due to concerns about slower global growth impacting the company’s core advertising business. We retain conviction in Alphabet’s merits as it continues to benefit from growth in mobile and online video advertising, which accrues to its core assets of search, YouTube, and the Google ad network. We are further encouraged by Alphabet’s investments in Cloud, AI, and Autonomous Driving (through its Waymo subsidiary).”
3. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $5,166,320,000
Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 3.65%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 252
On July 28, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) released earnings for the second quarter of fiscal 2022. The company reported sales of $121.2 billion, up 7% year over year, and beat Wall Street estimates by $2.09 billion. As of June 30, Fisher Asset Management’s stakes in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) are valued at $5.16 billion. The investment covers 3.65% of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is making strides in the green energy transition. On September 21, the company announced the expansion of its global renewable energy portfolio and added 2.7 gigawatts of clean energy capacity to 71 renewable energy projects.
On September 12, DA Davidson analyst Tom Forte maintained his $151 price target and Buy rating on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). The analyst noted that the company is exploring strategic M&A and expanding its footprint in the robotics and automation markets.
At the close of Q2 2022, 252 hedge funds were long Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) with stakes worth $30 billion in the company.
Here is what Baron Funds had to say about Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in its second-quarter 2022 investor letter:
“Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is the world’s largest retailer and cloud services provider. Shares of Amazon declined 35% in the quarter due to weaker-than-expected profits resulting from an overcapacity of resources coming out of COVID. We expect Amazon to grow into its retail capacity in the quarters to come, which would enable it to improve profitability accordingly. Amazon remains one of our largest holdings due to its durable competitive advantages with a leading position in multiple trillion-dollar markets with a long runway for growth.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, domestic e-commerce was only 14.3% of retail as of the first quarter of 2022. Internationally, the opportunity is even earlier as Amazon has still less than 2% market share of international retail spending. Its advertising share is roughly 3% and growing, underpinned by its structural closed loop, which enables accurate targeting and measurement.
Lastly, Amazon Web Services or AWS, remains the leading cloud provider, while cloud computing still represents only 9.5% out of the $4.3 trillion of global IT spending according to Gartner. Areas such as logistics and health care present additional optionality.”
2. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)
Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value:$7,369,578,000
Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 5.21%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 258
On September 20, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced that its board of directors has increased its quarterly dividend by 10% to $0.68 per share, up from the prior dividend of $0.62 per share. The dividend is payable on December 8 to investors of record on November 17. As of September 21, the stock is offering a forward dividend yield of 1.02% and has free cash flows of $65 billion.
Wall Street is bullish on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). On August 11, Guggenheim analyst John DiFucci started coverage of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) with a Neutral rating and a $292 price target. On September 21, Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss reiterated his $354 price target and buy-side Overweight rating on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT).
Insider Monkey found 258 hedge funds long Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) at the close of Q2 2022. These hedge funds held collective stakes of $56 billion in the company. Of those, $7.36 billion were of Fisher Asset Management. The investment covers 5.21% of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio.
Here is what Baron Funds had to say about Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in its second-quarter 2022 investor letter:
“Shares of Microsoft Corporation, a leading global provider of software solutions, declined 16.6% in the quarter along with the broader software group as well as due to growing concerns of a potential macro-driven slowdown. This is despite the company posting strong quarterly financial results and successfully absorbing headwinds from the war in Ukraine. The company had 21% revenue growth, 23% operating income growth, and 35% growth in Microsoft Cloud (all year-over-year in constant currency), which now represents 47% of total revenues.
As discussed above, we continue to believe Microsoft remains a durable and growing business as companies across all industries look to digitally transform, taking advantage of the continuously expanding solution set Microsoft has to offer.”
1. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $8,978,366,000
Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 6.35%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 128
On July 28, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) released earnings for the third quarter of fiscal 2022. The company reported earnings per share of $1.20 and beat expectations by $0.04. The company reported sales of roughly $83 billion. As of September 21, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has a trailing twelve-month operating margin of 30.5% and free cash flows of $107.5 billion.
On September 12, Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives reiterated his buy-side Outperform rating and $220 price target on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). On September 20, Evercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani raised his price target on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to $190 from $185 and maintained an Outperform rating on the shares.
According to Insider Monkey’s database, 128 hedge funds were bullish on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at the end of the second quarter of 2022. These funds held collective stakes worth $143 billion in the company. As of June 30, Fisher Asset Management’s stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is valued at $8.97 billion.
Here is what Alger Capital had to say about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its second-quarter 2022 investor letter:
“Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is a leading technology provider in telecommunications. computing and services. Apple’s iOS operating system is the company’s unique intellectual property and competitive strength. This software drives extremely tight engagement with consumers and enterprises. The engagement is fostering the growing purchase of high-margin services like music, apps, and apple pay. Apple’s shares detracted from performance as management lowered its guidance for the second quarter due to headwinds from the war in Ukraine, adverse foreign currency shifts, and dampened consumer demand associated with the coronavirus in China. Additionally, many investors were concerned that lockdowns implemented to curtail the spread of COVID-19 would impact production of apple products, however the manufacturing facilities have resumed activity.”
You can also take a look at 10 Blue Chip Dividend Stocks Hedge Funds Are Buying and 10 Best Tech Stocks to Buy According to Billionaire Ken Griffin.
