13F regulatory filings show that Warren Buffett made some interesting trades in the first quarter of 2023. A few of my colleagues here at The Motley Fool have covered these trades in recent articles. Buffett isn’t the only big-name investor who has made notable moves in the stock market recently, however. Here’s a look at some trades made in Q1 by other famous money managers.
Bill Ackman
Let’s start with wealthy hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who runs Pershing Square Capital Management (and has an investment fund on the London Stock Exchange).
Last quarter, Ackman bought Alphabet stock for his portfolio. According to 13F filings, he bought 8.1m Class C (GOOG) shares and 2.2m Class A (GOOGL) shares, spending over $1bn on the stock.
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Now, Ackman is a value investor. Generally speaking, he invests in high-quality companies that he thinks the market is underestimating. This suggests that he saw value in Alphabet when he was buying the stock.
George Soros
Up next is billionaire George Soros, who’s generally regarded as one of the most successful investors of all time (he once pocketed $1bn by betting against the British pound).
Compared to a lot of other famous investors, Soros is quite an active trader. And last quarter, he made a lot of trades.
However, one that stands out to me is his purchase of 103,000 Nike shares. This increased his holding in the stock – which is well off its highs due to China woes – by 161%.
Another was his purchase of 257,500 Uber shares. This upped his holding by 45%. Uber stock has been moving higher recently thanks to the company’s increased focus on profitability.
Micheal Burry
Michael Burry is the next big-name investor I want to highlight. A contrarian investor, Burry rose to fame after he made an absolute fortune during the 2008/09 housing market crash (his character was featured in the Hollywood movie ‘The Big Short’).
Now, 13F filings show that last quarter, Burry’s firm Scion Asset Management purchased 100,000 shares in Zoom Video Communications.
I think this trade is interesting as Zoom stock is currently back at pre-Covid levels (despite the fact we all use it far more than we did before the pandemic). It also has a very low valuation at present.
Terry Smith
Finally, we have the UK’s own Terry Smith, who runs the popular Fundsmith Equity fund.
Fundsmith’s 13F shows that in Q1, Smith significantly increased his stake in consumer goods company Procter & Gamble. He bought around 1.4m shares, boosting his position by 444%.
He also added to his position in Apple. Here, he bought 872,745 shares, increasing the size of his holding by 185%. This is interesting as, earlier this year, Smith said that he would be patient with Apple and wait for the right time to buy.
A word of warning
It’s worth stressing that all of these big-name money managers have their own unique investment strategies. Some buy stocks for the long term while others are more short-term focused.
So, while their trades can provide interesting investment ideas, investors should always do their own research. It’s important to buy shares that match one’s own goals and risk profile.
