Fisher Asset Management, managed by the famous billionaire investor Ken Fisher, disclosed its Q4 2011 portfolio holdings on January 26, 2012. The value of the firm's 13F portfolio increased from $30.56 billion at the end of September to $33.50 billion at the end of December, which is a nearly 10% expansion.
According to the filing, Fisher Asset Management made several significant adjustments to its portfolio. We compiled a list of top positions that the firm initiated during the fourth quarter 2011. We only focus on Nasdaq or NYSE-traded stocks and we exclude ETFs and stocks that are trading in other markets. Over the last 14 years, Ken Fisher's stock picks have beaten the S&P 500 overall on average, underperforming the S&P 500 in just three years. His investments outperformed the index by 24 percentage points in 2009 and 5 percentage points in 2010. We believe that by imitating the new stock picks of Fisher Asset Management, investors are more likely to beat the market in the long term.
Company | Ticker | Value (x$1000) | No. of shares |
Stillwater Mining Co. | 39,757 | 3,800,895 | |
McDermott Intl Inc. | 26,524 | 2,304,460 | |
Belden Inc. | 7,122 | 214,000 | |
Saks Inc. | 6,552 | 672,000 | |
Tempur-Pedic International | 4,109 | 78,225 | |
Pegasystems Inc. | 3,904 | 132,800 |
1. Stillwater Mining Co. is a palladium, platinum and associated metals miner. The company has a market cap of $1.5 billion and is now trading at $13 per share. The stock dropped to its 2-year low, about $8, in early October, and lost 51% in 2011. Ken Fisher bought 3.8 million shares during the fourth quarter, probably at from $10 to $12 per share. This gave him a nearly $40 million SWC position at the end of December. Kerr Neilson, Thomas E. Claugusm and Jim Simons had large positions in SWC prior to Q4.
2. McDermott Intl Inc. is a global offshore oil and gas projects company. It has a market cap of nearly $3 billion and is currently trading at above $12. MDR plunged in early August, and has been wavering between $10 and $14 after the third quarter, losing 44% for the whole year. Ken Fisher initiated a position of 2.3 million shares or $26.52 million in MDR during Q4, while Q3 filings also show that Cliff Asness and Steven Cohen had already invested in MDR before Fisher picked the stock.
3. Belden Inc. is a worldwide cable and networking products provider. The company has a market cap of $1.8 billion, approaching $40 per share right now. BDC reached its 52-week low in early October, about $24. Then, it rallied quickly and has regained its previous loss. Ken Fisher invested $7.12 million in 214,000 shares of BDC before January, and has made a profit of at least 20%. Matthew Lindenbaum, Cliff Asness and Chuck Royce are among the fund managers with large BDC positions at the end of September.
4. Saks Inc. is a luxury fashion products retailer in the United States. It has a market cap of $1.6 billion, and is now approaching $10 per share. SKS lost 9% in 2011, after having a mixed path in the fourth quarter. Ken Fisher had 672,000 shares in SKS as of the end of December, giving him a position of $6.55 million. Prior to Q4, Mason Hawkins' Southeastern Asset Management was SKS's largest stakeholder among the 350 hedge funds we are tracking.
5. Tempur-Pedic International is a mattresses and pillows manufacturer. The company has a market cap of $4.2 billion, and is now trading at about $66. TPX beat the S&P 500 to the ground over the past year, returning more than 30%. Ken Fisher might have paid about $53 per share for his $4.1 million TPX position in December, and it's possible that he has already gained 30%.
6. Pegasystems Inc. is a software and automating application company. It has a market cap of $1 billion and is currently hovering at around $28.50 a share. PEGA crashed in November after it released a poor FY2011 guidance, so it's possible that Ken Fisher entered at that time. As of the end of December, he had a $3.9 million position in PEGA. PEGA lost 20% in 2011.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.
