Below are billionaire Ken Fisher’s top 5 stock picks. For a comprehensive list please see Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top 10 Stock Picks.
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5. Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index ETF
Ken Fisher’s position in Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index ETF underperformed compared to the broader market index. This is because of pandemic related financial challenges and lower interest rate. Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index ETF is the fifth-largest holding of the Fisher Asset Management portfolio.
On the positive side, the firm has received hefty dividends from its investment. Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index ETF offers a monthly dividend. Its dividend yield is hovering around 2.75%. We prefer high dividend stocks to bond ETFs as dividend stocks are likely to appreciate in value over the years.
4. Visa Inc (NYSE: V)
The second-worst performer among its top ten positions is payment technology company Visa Inc (NYSE: V). Shares of Visa are up only 2% in the last twelve months. The pandemic related traveling restrictions has significantly impacted its share price and financial numbers in 2020. However, the stock has been recovering over the last couple of months amid hopes over the resumption of travel and tourism activities.
Qualivian Investment Partners, which generated 9.1% on a gross and net basis versus the S&P’s 8.93% in the third quarter, claimed in an investor’s letter that Visa is a smart long term investment. Here is what Qualivian Investment Partners stated:
“Visa: was a positive contributor in the quarter, just less so than our other holdings. Visa’s fiscal Q4 quarter (calendar Q3) results were better-than-expected as revenue and EPS beat street expectations driven by stabilizing domestic transaction volumes and good expense control. Although results showed continued pressures from depressed crossborder volumes, which may continue for the foreseeable future as with MA, we believe the worst is behind us and our long-term thesis of V’s structural positioning on the other side of the pandemic remains intact. Looking to the back half of 2021 and going into 2022, we see a recovery in cross-border activity, which together with traditional spending improvements at the POS, leaves considerable room for upside upon reopening. Further, once the macro normalizes (medium term), we believe V (and MA) will continue to benefit from structural drivers including increased contactless payments, more eCommerce transactions, as well as a lift in the value-added services like fraud/gateway/marketing services, and demand for other flows such as B2B, G2C and use of Visa Direct. There is no credible competition on the horizon for the Visa/Mastercard payment networks.”
3. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT)
Fisher Asset Management has been holding a position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) over the years. It is the third-largest stock holding of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio and the firm has benefited from its position. Shares of Microsoft soared close to 31% in the past twelve months and the company has also raised its dividends by 9.8% for 2021.
Blue Hawk Investment Group, which returned 7.48% for the Q4 of 2020, stated in an investor’s letter that its Microsoft position helped in generating returns. Here is what Blue Hawk Investment stated:
“Our top contributors in 2020 came from the long book, led by three of our core holdings. Microsoft round out the top five. The stock we have held since the inception of the fund, buying Microsoft at $62 originally in early 2017. A 3.5x return respectively over the four-year period.”
Schroder Investment Management talked in detail about MSFT in its Q4 investor letter.
2. Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN)
The largest e-commerce platform saw a stunning share price rally in the last twelve months and Fisher Asset Management is among the beneficiaries of the bull-run. AMZN is the second-largest stock holding of Ken Fisher’s 13F portfolio, accounting for 4.31% of the portfolio. Shares of AMZN grew around 59% over the last twelve months.
L1 Capital is bullish on Amazon and believes that Amazon is the best pick for 2021. Here is what L1 Capital stated in an investors letter:
“Several investments in the technology sector were trimmed on valuation grounds with the proceeds used to increase our investment in Amazon. Amazon’s successful flywheel business model and Amazon Web Services are well known. However, we believe the current share price under‑appreciates:
– The consistency and longevity of Amazon’s growth potential in its key businesses;
– The importance of additional revenue streams such as advertising which are high margin and growing rapidly; and
– The strengthening barriers to competition and competitive advantages arising from Amazon’s stepped‑up investment in logistics and other infrastructure.”
The Seattle, Washington-based company just had an amazing quarter. The company reported strong financial results for the fourth quarter, helped by record online sales driven by the pandemic. Amazon reported earnings of $7.2 billion, or $14.09 per share for the three months ended Dec. 30, representing a surge of more than two-folds from $3.3 billion, or $6.47 per share in the comparable period of 2019. Analysts on average were expecting the company to report a profit of $7.34 per share.
Revenue jumped 44 percent on a year-over-year basis to $125.6 billion, easily beating the consensus forecast of $119.7 billion. This was the first time that Amazon’s total sales crossed $100 billion in a quarter, thanks to the tremendous demand driven by the pandemic.
1. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL)
The tech giant Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is the largest stock holding of Ken Fisher’s portfolio. The firm held 61.2 million shares of Apple at the end of the fourth quarter. Apple stock price rose 71% in the last twelve months while the company offers a dividend yield of 0.61%.
Alger Spectra Fund highlighted few stocks including Apple in an investor’s letter. Here is what Alger Spectra Fund stated:
“Apple 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. This tight engagement is facilitating significant growth in high-margin services like streaming music apps and Apple Pay. Apple’s continued development of high-margin services and earnings streams for wearable devices as well as the potential contribution of 5G phones to the company’s growth supported the performance of Apple shares.”
Please also see 14 Best Low-Risk Stocks to Buy Right Now and 10 Best High Yield Stocks To Buy Now.
Disclosure: None.
