Columbus, Ohio-based Diamond Hill Capital (Trades, Portfolio) disclosed on Tuesday that it increased its holdings in five companies: Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B, Financial), United Continental Holdings Inc. (UAL, Financial), Facebook Inc. (FB, Financial), MetLife Inc. (MET, Financial) and Devon Energy Corp. (DVN, Financial).
Berkshire Hathaway
Diamond Hill added 848,540 Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway for an average price of $205.28 per share. With this transaction, the firm increased its portfolio 0.87%.
Berkshire Hathaway, managed by “The Oracle of Omaha” Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio), primarily offers insurance services through various subsidiaries, including Geico, General Re and Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group. GuruFocus lists three positive investing signs for Buffett’s conglomerate, including consistent revenue growth and a price-book ratio near a two-year low. Additionally, Berkshire has a net margin near a 10-year high of 18.56% and a GuruFocus business predictability rank of four stars.
Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio), founder of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, Financial), has approximately 63.57 million Class B shares of Berkshire in his foundation trust.
United
Diamond Hill added 2,396,608 shares of United for an average price of $69.09 per share. With this transaction, the firm increased its portfolio 0.85%.
Chicago-based United said on April 17 that despite several nor’easters and other weather disruptions, it posted “the best departure performance among [the company’s] largest competitors” according to CEO Oscar Munoz. United’s profitability ranks 7 out of 10 primarily due to expanding operating margins and a three-year EBITDA growth rate that outperforms 87% of global airlines.
Diamond Hill added 934,996 shares of Facebook for an average price of $179.55 per share. With this transaction, the firm increased its portfolio 0.77%.
Facebook reported strong active user growth during the quarter as discussed in a previous article. The company has a perfect financial strength rank of 10 and five positive investing signs, including no long-term debt and expanding profit margins.
MetLife
Diamond Hill added 3,027,327 shares of MetLife for an average price of $48.52. With this transaction, the firm increased its portfolio 0.71%.
MetLife, a major life insurance company, provides various insurance benefits to over 50 companies around the world. The company’s profitability ranks a weak 3 out 10 primarily due to a three-year revenue growth rate that underperforms 82% of global competitors. Although the company has expanding operating margins, MetLife posted an operating loss in the past three years.
Devon Energy
Diamond Hill added 4,320,329 shares of Devon Energy for an average price of $36.71 per share. With this transaction, the firm increased its portfolio 0.70%.
Oklahoma City-based Devon engages in the exploration and production of oil and natural gas. The company’s profitability ranks 6 out of 10 primarily due to a strong Piotroski F-score of 7 and a return on equity that outperforms 70% of global competitors.
See also
Diamond Hill’s top buys for the quarter include Texas Instruments Inc. (TXN, Financial) and Bank of the Ozarks Inc. (OZRK, Financial). You can view the latest guru trades by clicking “latest guru trades” under the Gurus tab.
Disclosure: No positions.
