Nike, Pepsi, Mondelez: Billionaires Are Counting On These Consumer Stocks To Woo Customers in Q3

#3 Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ)

– Number of Billionaires With Long Positions (as of June 30): 12
– Aggregate Value of Billionaires’ Holdings (as of June 30): $2.09 billion

Alcohol producer Constellation Brands also checks in with 12 billionaires long its shares as of June 30, up from ten a quarter earlier. Jim Simons’ RenTech opened a new position in the stock consisting of 448,600 shares, while Dan Loeb’s Third Point raised its stake by 14% to an even 2.00 million shares. On the other hand, Ray Dalio (Bridgewater Associates) slashed its Constellation Brands holding by 93% to just 2,213 shares.

Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) was a top performing consumer stock in the second quarter, gaining over 9%. Part of that quarterly surge came on the very last day of June, as the company reported strong results for its first quarter of fiscal year 2017. Adjusted EPS of $1.54 beat estimates by $0.02 and jumped by 22% year-over-year, the seventh-straight quarter that the company beat earnings estimates. Sales were also strong, beating estimates for the third-straight quarter, aided by a 9% boost in wine sales, which was spurred by two acquisitions during the previous year.

#2 Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE)

– Number of Billionaires With Long Positions (as of June 30): 12
– Aggregate Value of Billionaires’ Holdings (as of June 30): $2.17 billion

The athletic apparel and sports equipment company ranks second, with 12 billionaires being shareholders of its stock on June 30, owning $2.17 billion worth of its shares. That represented a big jump from just seven billionaires owning its shares on March 31. Louis Bacon (Moore Global Investments) and Mr. Simons’ RenTech were among the billionaire investors taking new positions in Nike during the second quarter.

After an underwhelming start, Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) shares are starting to experience their expected kick from exposure during the Olympic Games in Rio, with shares now up by 7.5% since the Rio Olympics started. Nike’s stock experienced rises of between 4% and 19% during the six Summer Games between 1984 and 2004, though the past two Summer Olympics did not produce the desired share performance, with losses of about 3%. Over 70% of the Track-and-Field events at this year’s Olympics have been won by athletes sporting Nike gear.

#1 Mondelez International Inc (NASDAQ:MDLZ)

– Number of Billionaires With Long Positions (as of June 30): 16
– Aggregate Value of Billionaires’ Holdings (as of June 30): $4.55 billion

Mondelez easily claims the top spot, as 16 billionaires owned its shares on June 30, a full 33% more than the runner-ups. Billionaire Bill Ackman (Pershing Square) held on to his 22.94 million shares throughout the quarter, while Warren Buffett (Berkshire Hathaway) did the same with his 578,000-share holding. David Harding (Winton Capital Management) cut his Mondelez stake by 37% to 1.37 million shares.

Mondelez International Inc (NASDAQ:MDLZ) announced on Thursday that will invest $100 million in China over the next three years as it looks to tap into that country’s growing chocolate market. The announcement comes shortly after the company’s $23 billion bid for Hershey Co (NYSE:HSY) was rejected. While Hershey does have a presence in China, it’s been struggling there of late, with its first quarter sales in the country sliding by 35% year-over-year. Mondelez is hopeful that its Milka brand will have better results in the country, with it slated to begin selling locally-produced product from that brand there in September.

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