Ray Dalio’s 5 Monster Moves in Q1: Disney, McDonald’s, Alphabet, Amazon, Coca-Cola

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

 – Shares Owned by Bridgewater Associates (as of March 31): 10,926 Class A Shares

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $8.34 Million

After disposing of its Alphabet holding in the fourth quarter, Bridgewater decided to re-open a position in the stock during the January-to-March period. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is being hounded by a couple of antitrust lawsuits, which includes European antitrust authorities planning to impose a record fine on the company amounting to €3 billion ($3.4 billion) in the coming weeks, according to the U.K.’s Telegraph. Shares of Alphabet have dipped by almost 7% since the start of this year, though the company has overtaken Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as the most valuable in the world during that time. Despite the company’s legal troubles, Harris Associates seems to be upbeat about Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL)’s future prospects, as it initiated a stake of 1.98 million Class C shares of the company during the first trimester.

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

 – Shares Owned by Bridgewater Associates (as of March 31): 125,826

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $15.81 Million

Bridgewater’s new stake in the iconic fast food brand represented about 1.37% of the company’s stock. The rise of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)’s shares in the past 12 months, a surge of 31.4%, has been rather impressive given that not much was expected of the stock. The $112 billion quick service restaurant operator has been consistently beating both top and bottom-line estimates over the last four quarters however, which has spurred the strong gains. Consequently, the company’s turnaround plan that was announced last year, which was focused on enhancing customer-driven elements through unmatched convenience and compelling value, seems to be taking hold. Senator Investment Group, which is managed by Doug Silverman and Alexander Klabin, sees yet more upside for the fast food chain as it boosted its McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) holding by 17% in the March trimester to 1.75 million shares.

Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS)

 – Shares Owned by Bridgewater Associates (as of March 31): 210,300

 – Value of Holding (as of March 31): $20.89 Million

The $161 billion family entertainment and media enterprise was another one of Bridgewater’s major new stakes during the first quarter. Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS)’s stock hit a rough patch recently and is down by almost 6% this year following the announcement of its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 on May 10. The company’s quarterly earnings of $1.36 per share missed estimates by $0.04, while its revenue of $12.97 billion fell short of expectations by $220 million. Ken Fisher‘s Fisher Asset Management was bullish on Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) during the first quarter, raising its stake in the company by 1% to 8.65 million shares.

Disclosure: None