Guru Steven Romick (Trades, Portfolio), portfolio manager of FPA Crescent Fund, reduced seven stakes in his portfolio in the fourth quarter.
Romick’s most noteworthy reduction in the fourth quarter was his sale of 3,078,502 shares of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, Financial), a Redmond, Washington-based computer company, for an average price of $52.75 per share. The transaction reduced Romick’s stake by nearly 21% and had an impact of -1.46% on his portfolio.
Romick’s remaining stake of 11,584,828 shares is 0.15% of Microsoft’s outstanding shares and 6.76% of Romick’s total assets.
Microsoft has a P/E of 34.7, a forward P/E of 15.7, a P/B of 5.3 and a P/S of 4.7. GuruFocus gives Microsoft a Financial Strength rating of 8/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.
Jeff Ubben (Trades, Portfolio) is Microsoft’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 75,273,091 shares in his portfolio. Ubben’s stake is 0.94% of Microsoft’s outstanding shares and 19.37% of Ubben’s total assets.
Microsoft sold for $52.07 per share Thursday.
Staffers of the presidential campaign of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders expressed suspicion recently about Microsoft’s influence on next Monday’s Iowa caucuses. Microsoft has partnered with the Democrats and Republicans to provide a platform for reporting caucus results next week. Sanders’ Iowa campaign coordinator Pete D’Alessandro wondered “why they’d want to give something like that away for free.”
Romick reduced his stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (WBA, Financial), a Deerfield, Illinois-based pharmaceutical and retail company, by almost three-fourths. Romick sold 1,354,410 shares for an average price of $84.94 per share. The deal had a -1.2% impact on Romick’s portfolio.
Romick’s 461,300-share stake is 0.04% of Walgreens Boots Alliance’s outstanding shares and 0.41% of Romick’s total assets.
Walgreens Boots Alliance has a P/E of 18.8, a forward P/E of 15.3, a P/B of 2.8 and a P/S of 0.8. GuruFocus gives Walgreens Boots Alliance a Financial Strength rating of 4/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 6/10.
Andreas Halvorsen (Trades, Portfolio) is Walgrens Boots Alliance’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 23,272,886 shares in his portfolio. Halvorsen’s stake is 2.16% of the company’s outstanding shares and 7.41% of Halvorsen’s total assets.
Walgreens Boots Alliance sold for $77.55 per share Thursday.
Walgreens Boots Alliance approved plans for three growth initiatives at its shareholder meeting in Manhattan this week – closing a deal for Rite Aid (RAD, Financial), an East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania-based drugstore chain; partnering with Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX, Financial), a Canadian pharmaceutical company, and enhancing promotion of Walgreens’ beauty brands.
Romick sold more than 43% of his stake in Orkla ASA (OSL:ORK, Financial), a Norwegian conglomerate, in the fourth quarter. Romick sold 5,957,072 shares for an average price of Kr68.99 (about $7.93 in U.S. currency) per share. The transaction had a -0.47% impact on Romick’s portfolio.
Romick’s stake of 7,781,690 shares is 0.77% of Orkla’s outstanding shares and 0.65% of Romick’s total assets. Romick is Orkla’s only shareholder among the gurus.
Orkla has a P/E of 28.1, a P/B of 2.2 and a P/S of 2.2. GuruFocus gives Orkla a Financial Strength rating of 6/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 5/10.
Orkla sold for Kr68.85 (roughly $7.92 in American money) per share Wednesday.
Romick reduced his stake in Carlsberg A/S (OCSE:CARL B), a Copenhagen-based brewing company, by 21%. Romick sold 510,733 shares for an average price of kr570.31 (approximately $83.08 in American dollars) per share. The transaction had a -0.42% impact on his portfolio.
Romick’s remaining stake of 1,921,844 shares is 1.26% of Carlsberg’s outstanding shares and 1.79% of Romick’s total assets. Romick is the only guru who owns shares of Carlsberg.
Carlsberg has a forward P/E of 15.1, a P/B of 1.9 and a P/S of 1.3. GuruFocus gives Carlsberg a Financial Strength rating of 8/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 5/10.
Carlsberg sold for kr555 (about $80.85 in U.S. currency) per share Wednesday.
Romick reduced his stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO, Financial), a Waltham, Massachusetts-based laboratory equipment company, by nearly 8%. Romick sold 136,520 shares for an average price of $133.56 per share. The deal had a -0.18% impact on Romick’s portfolio.
Romick’s stake of 1,638,180 shares is 0.41% of Thermo Fisher Scientific’s outstanding shares and 2.44% of Romick’s total assets.
Thermo Fisher Scientific has a P/E of 26, a forward P/E of 14.6, a P/B of 2.5 and a P/S of 3.1. GuruFocus gives the company a Financial Strength rating of 7/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 9/10.
Larry Robbins (Trades, Portfolio) is Thermo Fisher Scientific’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 8,511,204 shares in his portfolio. The stake is 2.13% of Thermo Fisher Scientific’s outstanding shares and 5.16% of Robbins’ total assets.
Thermo Fisher Scientific sold for $128.37 per share Thursday.
The company issued its earnings results Thursday. Fourth-quarter earnings per share were $2.12, exceeding estimates by 1 cent. Thermo Fisher Scientific has a 52-week low of $117.10 and a 52-week high of $143.65.
Romick sold more than 26% of his stake in Joy Global Inc. (JOY, Financial), a Milwaukee-based mining machinery company. Romick sold 891,760 shares for an average price of $15.13 per share. The transaction had a -0.14% impact on Romick’s portfolio.
The sale left Romick with a stake of 2,515,660 shares, which is 2.57% of Joy Global’s outstanding shares and 0.33% of the guru’s total assets.
Joy Global has a forward P/E of 18.7, a P/B of 0.6 and a P/S of 0.3. GuruFocus gives Joy Global a Financial Strength rating of 3/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 5/10.
James Barrow (Trades, Portfolio) is Joy Global’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 5,264,533 shares. The stake is 5.38% of Joy Global’s outstanding shares and 0.12% of Barrow’s total assets.
Joy Global sold for $9.51 per share Thursday.
Romick sold more than 9% of his stake in Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (BUD, Financial), a Leuven, Belgium-based beverage and brewing company. Romick sold 108,340 shares for an average price of $121.24 per share. The deal had a -0.12% impact on Romick’s portfolio.
Romick’s remaining stake of 1,035,427 shares is 0.06% of Anheuser-Busch’s outstanding shares and 1.36% of Romick’s total assets.
Anheuser-Busch has a P/E of 23.3, a forward P/E of 21.8, a P/B of 4.5 and a P/S of 4.5. GuruFocus gives Anheuser-Busch a Financial Strength rating of 6/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.
Tom Russo (Trades, Portfolio) is the company’s leading shareholder among the gurus. Russo’s stake of 5,173,285 shares is 0.32% of Anheuser-Busch’s outstanding shares and 4.97% of Russo’s total assets.
Anheuser-Busch sold for $122.36 per share Thursday.
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