Stan Druckenmiller Is Still Very Bullish On These 5 Stocks

In this article, we discuss Stan Druckenmiller is still very bullish on these 5 stocks. If you want to see more stocks in this selection, check out worried about deficit Stan Druckenmiller is Still Very Bullish on These Stocks.

5. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Duquesne Capital’s Equity Stake: $251.58 Million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 87

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) is a healthcare company. It makes and sells drugs for different diseases all over the world. It is one of Druckenmiller’s top stock picks in the drug manufacturing business as it generates billions of dollars from selling crucial treatments for cancer, diabetes and other chronic illnesses.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) is up by more than 55% for the year, affirming Duquesne Capital’s $251.58 million worth of stake in the company, accounting for 8.75% of the portfolio. The hedge fund first acquired a stake in the company in the third quarter of 2012. It started building position in the company in the second quarter of last year after exiting in 2013. 

Of the 910 hedge funds listed in Insider Monkey’s database, 87 funds held positions in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) during Q2 2023, marking an increase from 72 in the preceding quarter. The combined worth of these holdings exceeds $5 billion.

In its Q3 2023 investor letter, the Madison Sustainable Equity Fund provided the following statement regarding Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY):

“Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) again moved higher in the third quarter. The stock has continued to be fuelled by its diabetes franchise, in particular Mounjaro, which has been approved for use in diabetes but is also expected to be approved in obesity later this year. We are also waiting for approval of donanemab for Alzheimer’s which should occur by year end.”

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4. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)

Duquesne Capital’s Equity Stake: $401.90 Million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 175

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) makes computer graphics chips, software, and systems for gaming, design, cloud, AI, and more. Its graphics processing units are in high demand for powering artificial intelligence innovations. The strong demand has seen the company deliver record-breaking earnings and revenues. Consequently, NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) remains one of Druckenmiller’s top stock picks in the technology sector, having rallied by about 200% year to date. 

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is now a trillion-dollar empire and accounts for 13.98% of Duquesne Capital’s portfolio on stakes worth $401.90 million. Duquesne Capital has been a long-term investor in NVDA, as it has held the stock for more than five years. It started accumulating a position in the company in Q2 2016. The hedge fund has increased its stake in NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) over time, as it has bought more shares than it has sold in most quarters. NVDA has been one of the top holdings of Duquesne Capital, as it has accounted for more than 5% of the portfolio in several quarters.

The company had 175 hedge funds owning shares in it at the end of Q2 2023, out of the 910 funds that Insider Monkey tracks. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)’s notable stakeholder in Q3 2023 was Nancy Zevenbergen’s Zevenbergen Capital Investments, with a stake worth around $285 million.

In its Q3 2023 investor letter, the Artisan Developing World Fund shared the following observation regarding NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA):

“Our focus on scalable business models has its roots in our economic framework. As potential output moderated in most emerging countries, it became clear to us affordability was not improving and that low penetration was necessary but not sufficient for value creation. We eliminated companies from the portfolio that were struggling to generate revenue significantly in excess of fixed costs, often replacing them with passport companies such as NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Airbnb that were economically tied to emerging markets. Over a period of time, we have been successful in redefining the emerging markets opportunity set around real per capita GDP increases, growth in the middle class, revenue velocity and demand fulfilment. Combined with changes in the market backdrop that have resulted in privileged competitive positions for companies with financial strength and access to capital, we find our opportunity set expanding anew to include companies that are both based in emerging markets and conducive to value creation.”

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3. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Duquesne Capital’s Equity Stake: $15.69 million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 225

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is a social networking company that makes apps for people to connect. Its products are Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Oculus. It makes money primarily from running ads on the popular social networking apps. 

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) stock has rallied by about 150% year to date after outperforming the Nasdaq 100, up by about 45%. The rally has come on the company delivering solid financial results bolstered by increased ad spending. Druckenmiller Duquesne Capital held stakes worth $15.69 million in the company, accounting for 0.55% of the portfolio, having acquired stakes in Q2 2014. 

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) had 225 hedge funds holding shares in it at the end of Q2 2023, out of the 910 hedge funds Insider Monkey tracks. The hedge fund with a prominent stake in the company was Nancy Zevenbergen’s Zevenbergen Capital Investments.

Here is what Rowan Street Capital said about Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its third-quarter 2023 investor letter:

“Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META): $550 billion rebound in market cap in less than a year.

A deep dive into what is driving the optimism for the stock.

It’s been exactly 11 months since we published an article: “Does a $750 billion decline in Meta’s market cap make sense?” META is up +240% since then compared to the S&P 500 advance of +13.5% over the same period. We will examine what drove this abnormal return. But first, we can’t help but wonder: How is it possible for a trillion-dollar company to first drop -75% to $268 billion in market cap and then skyrocket +250% to over $800 billion in market cap all in just less than 2 years. We are not talking about some micro-cap company here. META is the 7th largest company in the world. It is very well-known to everybody and is covered by 45+ analysts.

Are the markets efficient when you witness this kind of a phenomenon?

We believe that the markets have become much less efficient over the short term with the proliferation of the internet, smartphones, social media and effortless access to information. This is counterintuitive to what the academics teach us, but that is how it has worked. We will spare you further discussion on the efficiency of the markets as the purpose of this note was to discuss our investment in META. We want to share this observation and be clear that we are not complaining here. Part of our job as fund managers is to exploit these market inefficiencies and drive value to the Rowan portfolio over the long run. And over the long run, the markets do a pretty good job valuing companies…” (Click here to read the full text).

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2. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)

Duquesne Capital’s Equity Stake: $28.47 million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 278

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is an online retailer that sells products and subscriptions. It also makes money from cloud services as part of Amazon Web Services and manufactures and sells electronic devices, including Kindle Fire Tablets, Fire TVs and Echo smart speakers. 

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) has gained more than 42% year to date, affirming why it is one of the stocks Druckenmiller is still very bullish on. While the hedge fund acquired sakes in the fourth quarter of 2010. Since that time, he has been actively trading shares of the company. In Q2 2023, it accounted for 0.99% of the portfolio valued at $28.47 million. 

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) had 278 top hedge funds owning shares in it. They had shares worth $34.9 billion in total. This was more than the 243 top hedge funds with shares worth $25.7 billion in the previous quarter. In Q3 2023, Diamond Hill Capital was a significant shareholder of the company, with a stake of $344 million.

Here is what White Falcon Capital Management said about Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in its third quarter 2023 investor letter:

“There are comparable narratives involving NU Holdings, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Teck Resources, to name a few holdings from the White Falcon portfolio. Amazon constructed its logistics network and cloud computing infrastructure using yesterday’s currency, but it is poised to capitalize on this network with the inflated dollars of tomorrow. In essence, we believe we hold wonderful businesses with growing revenue streams and potential for operating leverage – all at reasonable valuations.”

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1. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Duquesne Capital’s Equity Stake: $282.29 Million
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 300

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a tech company that makes software, services, solutions, and devices. It is mainly known for its software suite that includes Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft Viva, and Microsoft 365 co-pilot. It’s also a big player in cloud computing through Microsoft Azure and gaming through the Xbox console. 

One of the stocks that Druckenmiller is very bullish on is Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). The stock is up by about 41% year to date and accounts for 14% of Duquesne Capital’s portfolio following an initial investment in the first quarter of 2014. He has been trading the company’s shares ever since. He now owns a stake worth $282.29 million in the company.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) was the top choice of hedge funds in Q2 2023. 300 funds had shares in the tech giant, worth almost $70 billion. Donald Yacktman’s Yacktman Asset Management was a notable shareholder of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in Q3 2023, with stakes worth $559.82 million.

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