Bill Gates' Foundation Sells Berkshire, Buys 2 Funds

Firm's largest trades of the 4th quarter

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Feb 28, 2020
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Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio)' Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust traded shares of the following stocks during the fourth quarter of 2019.

Berkshire Hathaway

The foundation reduced its Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B) position by 9.11%. The portfolio was impacted by -4.90%.

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During the 4th quarter, 17 gurus reduced their positions in Berkshire while 11 bought shares of the company.

Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio)’s holding company has a market cap of $491.95 billion and an enterprise value of $470.45 billion.

GuruFocus gives the company a profitability and growth rating of 6 out of 10. While the return on equity of 21.17% is underperforming the sector, return on assets of 10.68% is outperforming 71% of companies in the travel insurance, diversified industry. Its financial strength is rated 4 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.62 is below the industry median of 2.82.

The largest guru shareholder of the company is Gates with 2.19% of outstanding shares, followed by Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio)’s Pershing Square Capital Management with 0.18% and Tom Russo (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.10%.

Templeton Dragon Fund

The investor entered a new position in Templeton Dragon Fund Inc. (TDF). With 1.7 million shares, the portfolio was impacted by 0.16%.

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During the 4th quarter, Gates became the only guru shareholder of the company.

The fund has a market cap and enterprise value of $612 million.

The return on equity of 21.92% is far above the industry median of 4.08% and the return on assets of 21.87% is above the industry’s average return of 1.81%.

Beyond Meat

Gates’ foundation exited its Beyond Meat Inc. (BYND) position, impacting the portfolio by -0.07%.

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During the 4th quarter, three gurus reduced their positions in Beyond Meat, while just one (Philippe Laffont (Trades, Portfolio)) bought shares of the company.

The provider of plant-based "fake meat" products has a market cap of $5.35 billion and enterprise value of $5.07 billion.

GuruFocus gives the company a profitability and growth rating of 1 out of 10. The return on equity of -17.85% and return on assets of -7.95% are underperforming 90% of companies in the consumer-packaged goods industry. Its financial strength is rated 7 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 10.1 is above the industry median of 0.39.

The largest guru shareholder of the company is Laffont with 0.56% of outstanding shares, followed by Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio)’s Point72 Asset Management which owns a small stake of 100 shares.

China Fund

The investor's firm bought 535.340 shares of China Fund Inc. (CHN). The trade had an impact of 0.05% on the portfolio.

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The investment company has a market cap and enterprise value of $209.65 million.

Cornerstone Building Brands

The investor exited its Cornerstone Building Brands (CNR) position.

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During the 4th quarter, three gurus reduced their positions in the company.

The company provides solutions for the residential and commercial industry. It has a market cap of $894 million and an enterprise value of $4.39 billion.

GuruFocus gives the company a profitability and growth rating of 6 out of 10. The return on equity of 1.4% and return on assets of 0.27% are underperforming 74% of companies in the construction industry. Its financial strength is rated 3 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.03 underperforms 93% of competitors.

Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio)’ Renaissance Technologies is the largest guru shareholder of the company with 1.82% of outstanding shares, followed by PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.27% and Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.20%.

Disclosure: I do not own any stocks mentioned.

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