Editor’s Note: Related tickers: Liberty Media Corp (NASDAQ:LMCA), Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), Starz (NASDAQ:STRZA), Sirius XM Radio Inc (NASDAQ:SIRI), Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG), Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE:FDO), Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR), Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT), Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI), Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX)
Liberty
Liberty Media Corp (NASDAQ:LMCA) stands atop Tiger’s new initiations with a purchase of nearly 5.5mm shares, valued at $610mm at the date of report (those 5.5mm shares would be worth $675mm as of May 29). Much of that increase has occurred in May, with the stock up 12% in that time alone. Liberty Media Corp (NASDAQ:LMCA) has been acquisition-hungry since its Starz (NASDAQ:STRZA) spin-off, including a recent purchase of a 27% stake in Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR). Billionaire Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway recently made headlines by disclosing his $630mm stake in the company, and most expect its Sirius XM Radio Inc (NASDAQ:SIRI) stake to deliver value in some form or another down the road, the exact process is still unknown, however; read about Buffett’s major positions here.
Dollar General
Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) lands in the second spot, with the low-price retailer receiving a $270mm investment from Tiger, working out to 5.3mm shares. This year has been incredibly kind to Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) investors so far, pushing the stock up to the tune of 23%. Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG) joins a host of other dollar stores like Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE:FDO) and Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR) in competing with Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) for shoppers, although a new Bloomberg Industries study shows Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) prices to be lower in most cases. The company plans to hire 10,000 new workers to fill needs in its retail and distribution centers. Billionaire Thomas Steyer of Farallon Capital carries over 4mm shares; view his top holdings here.
Carters
Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) is next on our list with a 2.9mm share purchase from Tiger, amounting to nearly $170mm. The children and babies apparel brand falls under our definition of a small-cap with its $4.2bn size and has edged out the overall market in terms of performance since last year, racking up a 30% gain. The month of May saw the company announce its first-ever quarterly dividend, amounting to $0.16/share and giving a forward yield of nearly 1%. Billionaire Andreas Halvorsen of Viking Global has nearly $200mm invested in Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI), and brand loyalty will continue to be a major strength of this company moving forward. Tiger Global’s investment in Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI) is very telling, as it indicates a general bullishness toward the economy in general.
Which other stocks made it into Tiger’s portfolio?
Colfax (NYSE:CFX) adds additional diversity to Tiger’s list of new positions. The manufacturing and engineering company saw a $160mm investment from the fund as it snatched up 3.5mm shares. Colfax is pressing up against its 52-week highs, which is not surprising given the 67% gain the stock has bestowed investors who bought in this time last year. Colfax will be seeing some dilution after its early-May announcement of a 7mm share offering, which could possibly go to debt repayment or an acquisition. Billionaire Stephen Mandel of Lone Pine Capital has a position size that roughly matches Tiger’s.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) rounds out our list of new positions in the fund’s portfolio, receiving an allotment $124mm (655,000 shares) from the firm. Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) has been a runaway winner so far in 2013, using its January earnings announcement as a catalyst to post a 130% gain year-to-date. But has the $200+ stock overheated? According to an average of analyst price targets, Netflix is 5% over where their valuations lie. Despite encroachment from services like Hulu and Amazon Instant Video, Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) has created a competitive distance with the release of original programming. Billionaire Carl Icahn of Icahn Capital LP has seen the value of his position grow north of $1bn, and there are reasons to expect that Icahn can aid Netflix in stimulating shareholder value moving forward, though the details are not yet known.
Final thoughts
Hedge fund sentiment is an important, yet underused indicator in the financial markets. As seen in the link above, there are many readers who are using specific strategies to their advantage in this space, Tiger Global should definitely be on the radar of any piggybacking investor. Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), Colfax, Dollar General Corp. (NYSE:DG), Carter’s, Inc. (NYSE:CRI), and Liberty Media Corp (NASDAQ:LMCA) probably wouldn’t show up on a stock screen somewhere, but they are all new favorites of the mammoth hedge fund, which makes them worth watching.
Disclosure: I do not own shares of any stocks mentioned in this article.
