Patient Capital Management, a value investing firm, released its “Patient Capital Opportunity Equity Strategy” fourth quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. During the quarter, the strategy returned 8.2% net of fees compared to the S&P 500’s 2.4% return. According to a three-factor performance attribution model, allocation and selection effects contributed positively to the portfolio’s outperformance which was partially offset by interaction effects. For similar reasons, the fourth quarter of 2024 resembled the fourth quarter of 2023. 2023 benefitted from soft landing optimism, as did 2024 which was triggered by Donald Trump’s election as the next president and a belief that fewer regulation and growth-oriented policies would be implemented. In addition, you can check the fund’s top 5 holdings to know its best picks in 2024.
Patient Capital Management highlighted stocks like United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) in the fourth quarter 2024 investor letter. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) offers air transportation services that transports people and cargo through its mainline and regional fleets. The one-month return of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) was 9.84%, and its shares gained 163.92% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On January 15, 2025, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) stock closed at $104.96 per share with a market capitalization of $34.519 billion.
Patient Capital Management stated the following regarding United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) had a strong fourth quarter, gaining 70.2% in the period. The company benefitted from continued strong demand that surprised the market as well as the initiation of a buyback program, the first since COVID. There continues to be strong travel demand from both retail and business travelers. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), global air passenger travel is still below the pre-COVID implied trend path despite reaching a new all-time high this year. United’s focus on the customer over the last few years has led to strong improvement in net promoter scores (NPS) which should continue to flow through the model via better TRASM (total revenue per available seat mile) and higher cash flows and earnings. As of today, United alone accounts for ~30% of the overall industry’s profits. We expect this market share to grow and be defensible as we transition to an environment where customer service becomes the differentiating factor, and scale provides unparalleled ability to reinvest in the customer experience.”
A large commercial aircraft soaring through the clouds, its window reflecting the clouds and the blue sky.
United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 54 hedge fund portfolios held United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) at the end of the third quarter which was 56 in the previous quarter. United Airlines Holdings, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:UAL) top line revenue grew 2.5% year-over-year to $14.8 billion in the third quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
In another article, we discussed United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) and shared the list of top airline stocks benefiting from the air travel boom. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q4 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.