Westport, Connecticut-based Westport Asset Management (Trades, Portfolio) is an investment advisory firm that manages four accounts collectively valued at $143 million. It produced returns of 8.62% last year, 28.54% in 2013 and 12.26% in 2012.
Most of its second-quarter activity involved selling shares in its portfolio.
Westport nearly sold its entire stake in Republic Services Inc. (RSG, Financial), a Phoenix, Arizona-based solid waste management company. Westport began the quarter with 417,500 shares of RSG in its portfolio and sold 392,500 shares for an average price of $40.23 per share. The sale had a -1.66% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
Republic Services has a market cap of $15.04 billion and an enterprise value of $22.5 billion. It has a P/E of 25.5, a Price/Book of 1.9 and a Price/Sales of 1.7. Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), John Hussman (Trades, Portfolio), Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio), Chris Davis (Trades, Portfolio), Ruane Cunniff (Trades, Portfolio), Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) and John Keeley (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of Republic Services in their portfolios.
Proportionately, Westport almost reduced its stake in W. W. Grainger Inc. (GWW, Financial), an Illinois-based industrial supply company, by as much. Westport started the second quarter with 44,500 shares of GWW in its portfolio and sold 39,500 shares for an average price of $242.42 per share. That transaction had a -0.98% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
Grainger has a market cap of $14.83 billion and an enterprise value of $15.49 billion. It has a P/E of 19.1, a Price/Book of 4.9 and a Price/Sales of 1.5. First Eagle Investment (Trades, Portfolio), Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), Meridian Funds (Trades, Portfolio), Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio), John Rogers (Trades, Portfolio), Murray Stahl (Trades, Portfolio), Chris Davis (Trades, Portfolio) and First Pacific Advisors (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of Grainger in their portfolios.
Westport also reduced its positions in eight other companies – Precision Castparts Corp. (PCP, Financial), Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS, Financial), IPG Photonics Corp. (IPGP, Financial), United Rentals Inc. (URI, Financial), DeVry Education Group Inc. (DV, Financial), Big Lots Inc. (BIG, Financial), Synopsys Inc. (SNPS, Financial) and Willis Group Holdings PLC (WSH, Financial).
Westport did sell its stakes in two companies in the second quarter – MSC Industrial Direct Co. Inc. (MSM, Financial) and AbbVie Inc. (ABBV, Financial).
Wesport sold its 152,800-share stake in MSC Industrial Direct, a New York-based industrial equipment distributor, for an average price of $71.2 per share. The sale had a -1.15% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
MSC Industrial Direct has a market cap of $4.42 billion and an enterprise value of $4.86 billion. It has a P/E of 18.9, a Price/Book of 3.4 and a Price/Sales of 1.5. Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio), Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio), Ron Baron (Trades, Portfolio), Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio), Robert Olstein (Trades, Portfolio), Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio) and Murray Stahl (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of MSC Industrial Direct in their portfolios.
Westport sold its 180,000-share stake in AbbVie, a a research-based biopharmaceutical company headquartered in North Chicago, for an average price of $65.18 per share. That transaction had a -1.1% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
AbbVie has a market cap of $113.63 billion and an enterprise value of $132.47 billion. It has a P/E of 54.4, a Price/Book of 19.9 and a Price/Sales of 5.3. Larry Robbins (Trades, Portfolio), PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), Pioneer Investments (Trades, Portfolio), NWQ Managers (Trades, Portfolio), Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio), Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio), First Eagle Investment (Trades, Portfolio), Bill Frels (Trades, Portfolio), Robert Bruce (Trades, Portfolio), Scott Black (Trades, Portfolio), Tom Russo (Trades, Portfolio), Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio), Dodge & Cox, Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio), Murray Stahl (Trades, Portfolio), David Dreman (Trades, Portfolio), Louis Moore Bacon (Trades, Portfolio), Jeff Auxier (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) and Lee Ainslie (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of AbbVie in their portfolios.
Last week, AbbVie announced it was seeking approval for its experimental treatment for a form of leukemia.
Westport added to only one existing stake in the second quarter – Ross Stores Inc. (ROST), a California-based discount department store chain. Westport bought 230,000 shares, doubling its stake for an average price of $50.27 per share. The acquisition had a 1.22% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
Ross Stores has a market cap of $22.1 billion and an enterprise value of $21.73 billion. It has a P/E of 23.1, a Price/Book of 9.6 and a Price/Sales of 2.0. PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), Pioneer Investments (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio), Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio), Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio), Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio), Scott Black (Trades, Portfolio), Tom Gayner (Trades, Portfolio), Ray Dalio (Trades, Portfolio), Lee Ainslie (Trades, Portfolio), RS Investment Management (Trades, Portfolio) and Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of Ross Stores in their portfolios.
Likewise, Westport invested in only one new company in the second quarter – Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD), a California-based biotechnology company. Westport bought 95,000 shares of Gilead Sciences for an average price of $109.1 per share. The purchase had a 1.21% impact on Westport’s portfolio.
Gilead has a market cap of $169.66 billion and an enterprise value of $173.67 billion. It has a P/E of 12.1, a Price/Book of 10.4 and a Price/Sales of 6.3. Pioneer Investments (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), John Rogers (Trades, Portfolio), Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio), Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio), Julian Robertson (Trades, Portfolio), Ronald Muhlenkamp (Trades, Portfolio), NWQ Managers (Trades, Portfolio), RS Investment Management (Trades, Portfolio), Ray Dalio (Trades, Portfolio), John Hussman (Trades, Portfolio), John Buckingham (Trades, Portfolio), Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio), Louis Moore Bacon (Trades, Portfolio), Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio), David Dreman (Trades, Portfolio), Murray Stahl (Trades, Portfolio), Dodge & Cox, Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio), Lee Ainslie (Trades, Portfolio), John Burbank (Trades, Portfolio) and First Eagle Investment (Trades, Portfolio) have shares of Gilead Sciences in their portfolios.
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