As we look ahead to the Christmas holiday, GuruFocus users have placed several stocks on their Christmas wish lists. According to GuruFocus Baskets statistics, the six most-popular stocks in the "Considering" virtual basket as of Wednesday are Biogen Inc. (BIIB, Financial), Apple Inc. (AAPL, Financial), Intel Corp. (INTC, Financial), Bank of America Corp. (BAC, Financial), Facebook Inc. (FB, Financial) and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, Financial).
The GuruFocus Baskets feature follows Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.A, Financial)(BRK.B, Financial) co-managers Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio) and Charlie Munger (Trades, Portfolio)'s theory of achieving higher returns by investing only within one's "circle of competence." GuruFocus users can place a stock into one of four virtual baskets: buying the stock, considering buying shares, researching the stock as a potential investment or marking the stock as not interested.
Following the consensus
Our research suggests that stocks that are bought by multiple gurus and insiders have good investing potential. The Most Broadly Held portfolio, which tracks the stocks with the highest number of gurus owning shares, has returned 21.44% since Jan. 2 and an annualized 15.36% per year over the past 10 years, outperforming the Standard & Poor's 500 Index's return of an annualized 11.43% per year over the same period.
As such, GuruFocus users may find good opportunities by looking at consensus stock picks among gurus, insiders and other GuruFocus users. With a Premium membership, users can view pages like the Aggregated Portfolio of Gurus and Insider Cluster Buys as well as screen for stocks using our All-in-One Screener or predefined value screens.
The GuruFocus Baskets statistics track the top 10 stocks in each virtual basket, allowing users to view the stocks other GuruFocus users are buying or considering buying.
Biogen
Nineteen GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Biogen.
GuruFocus ranks the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based drug manufacturer's profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a 4.5-star business predictability rank and an operating margin that has increased approximately 2.10% per year on average over the past five years and is outperforming over 97% of global competitors.
Shares of Biogen traded around $247.65, showing that the stock is modestly undervalued with a price-to-GF Value ratio of 0.71. The stock's valuation ranks 10 out of 10 on the back of price-earnings and price-sales ratios trending near 10-year lows.
Gurus with holdings in Biogen include Berkshire, PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio)' Renaissance Technologies and the Vanguard Health Care Fund (Trades, Portfolio).
Apple
Sixteen GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Apple.
GuruFocus ranks the Cupertino, California-based tech giant's profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a high Piotroski F-score of 7, consistent revenue growth and profit margins and returns outperforming over 95% of global competitors.
Intel
Fifteen GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Intel.
GuruFocus ranks the Santa Clara, California-based semiconductor company's profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a high Piotroski F-score of 7, a 4.5-star business predictability rank and an operating margin that has increased approximately 4.1% per year on average over the past five years and is outperforming over 95% of global competitors.
Bank of America
Fourteen GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Bank of America.
GuruFocus ranks the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank's financial strength 3 out of 10 on the back of debt ratios underperforming over 60% of global competitors despite an equity-to-asset ratio that outperforms over 56% of global banks. Generally, banks have high financial leverage compared to companies in other market sectors.
Twelve GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Facebook.
GuruFocus ranks the Menlo Park, California-based social media giant's financial strength and profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a four-digit interest coverage ratio, a double-digit Altman Z-score and an operating margin that is outperforming over 92% of global competitors.
Microsoft
Twelve GuruFocus users voted that they are considering buying shares of Microsoft.
GuruFocus ranks the Redmond, Washington-based software giant's profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a high Piotroski F-score of 8 and an operating margin that has increased approximately 4.3% per year on average over the past five years and is outperforming over 98% of global competitors.
See also
Intel and Biogen are the top two stocks in the "Buying" virtual basket, with 96 GuruFocus users buying shares in Intel and 42 GuruFocus users buying shares in Biogen. Apple and Chinese retail giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA, Financial) come in third with 30 GuruFocus users buying shares.
Disclosure: Long Apple, Biogen and Intel.
Read more here:
- 5 High-Quality Stocks Bought by Gurus and Insiders
- 5 Christmas Bargains in Warren Buffett's Portfolio
- 4 Global Telecom Stocks With Strong Margin Growth
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