Lou Simpson (Trades, Portfolio) is manager of SQ Advisors. He manages a portfolio composed of 14 stocks with a total value of $2.619 billion. During the first quarter the guru sold shares in the following stocks:
The AMETEK Inc. (AME) position was reduced by 31.55% with an impact of -3.28% on the portfolio.
The company is a manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices with operations in North America, Europe, Asia and South America.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 8 out of 10. The return on equity (ROE) of 15.49% and the return on assets (ROA) of 7.32% are outperforming 77% of the companies in the Global Diversified Industrials industry. Financial strength has a rating of 6 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.24 is below the industry median of 1.12.
Simpson is the largest shareholder among the gurus with 1.51% of outstanding shares followed by Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.83%, Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.13%, Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.08%, RS Investment Management (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.06%, Paul Tudor Jones (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.03% and Louis Moore Bacon (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.02%.
The stake in Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Class BĂ‚ (BRK.B) was reduced by 20.31% with an impact of -2.61% on the portfolio.
The company operates in the insurance industry. Its insurance businesses are conducted on both a primary basis and reinsurance basis. It is also engaged in freight rail transportation, utility and energy generation and distribution.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 6 out of 10. While the ROE of 8.25% is underperforming the sector, the ROA of 3.69% is outperforming 67% of the companies in the Global Insurance - Diversified industry. Financial strength has a rating of 6 out of 10 with a cash-debt ratio of 0.93.
Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio) is the largest shareholder among the gurus with 2.61% of outstanding shares followed by Ken Fisher (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.23%, Ruane Cunniff (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.11%, Tom Russo (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.1%, David Rolfe (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.09% and Chris Davis (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.07%.
The investor exited his holding in LiLAC Group Class CĂ‚ (LILAK) with an impact of -0.88% on the portfolio.
It is a TV and broadband company that offers television, broadband and telecom services in Latin America and the Caribbean under brands VTR, Flow, Liberty, Mas Movil and BTC. It also operates a submarine fiber network throughout the region.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 3 out of 10. The ROE of -6.46 and the ROA of -1.87% are underperforming 77% of the companies in the Global Pay TV industry. Financial strength has a rating of 4 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.09 is below the industry median of 0.41.
Dodge & Cox is the largest shareholder among the gurus with 3.87% of outstanding shares followed by John Griffin (Trades, Portfolio) with 2.78%, Glenn Greenberg (Trades, Portfolio) with 1.06%, Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio) with 1%, Davis with 0.92%, Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.75%, Wallace Weitz (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.6 and Gates with 0.37%.
The guru reduced his position in Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) by 7.70% with an impact of -0.87% on the portfolio.
It is a savings and loan holding company, which through its subsidiaries is engaged in securities brokerage, banking and related financial services. The company operates in two segments namely Investor Services and Advisor Services.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 6 out of 10. While the ROE of 11.99% is outperforming the sector, the ROA of 0.97% is underperforming 59% of the companies in the Global Capital Markets industry. Financial strength has a rating of 7 out of 10 with a cash-debt ratio of 2.30.
The largest shareholder among the gurus is Dodge & Cox with 7.15% of outstanding shares followed by PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio) with 3.09%, Frank Sands (Trades, Portfolio) with 2.18%, Andreas Halvorsen (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.79%, Ruane Cunniff with 0.61% and Greenberg with 0.57%.
The guru reduced his holding in Brookfield Asset Management Inc. Class AĂ‚ (BAM) by 5.50%. The transaction had an impact of -0.63% on the portfolio.
It is an alternative asset management company focused on property, renewable energy, infrastructure and private equity.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 9 out of 10. The ROE of 4.66% and the ROA of 0.85% are underperforming 70% of the companies in the Global Real Estate – General industry. Financial strength has a rating of 4 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.14 is below the industry median of 0.37.
Greenberg is another notable shareholder among the gurus with 0.77% of outstanding shares followed by Tom Gayner (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.61%, Third Avenue Management (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.5%, Murray Stahl (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.27%, Ron Baron (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.08% and Davis with 0.08%.
The investor reduced his stake in Cable One Inc. (CABO) by 0.58%. The trade had an impact of -0.03% on the portfolio.
The company mainly provides broadband, voice and video services. Its major source of revenue is from data and video services.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 7 out of 10. The ROE of 23.60% and ROA of 7.55% are outperforming 78% of the companies in the Global Telecom Services industry. Financial strength has a rating of 5 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.32 is below the industry median of 0.41.
Another notable shareholder among the gurus is Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio) with 1.25% of outstanding shares followed by Gabelli with 0.29%, Gayner with 0.09%, Stahl with 0.05% and Caxton Associates (Trades, Portfolio) with 0.01%.
The guru sold out his shares in Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) with an impact of -0.02% on the portfolio.
The company operates as one of the largest banks in the U.S. Its business operations are split into three segments: community banking; wholesale banking; and wealth, brokerage and retirement.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 6 out of 10. The ROE of 10.14% and ROA of 1.15% are outperforming 62% of the companies in the Global Banks – Global industry. Financial strength has a rating of 5 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.06 is below the industry median 2.12.
Buffett is the largest shareholder among the gurus with 9.6% of outstanding shares followed by Dodge & Cox with 1.42%, Barrow, Hanley, Mewhinney & Strauss with 0.69%, Davis with 0.51%, PRIMECAP Management with 0.37%, Fisher with 0.36% and Russo with 0.27%.
The position in Liberty Global PLC Class CĂ‚ (LBTYK) was slightly reduced by 0.10% with an impact of -0.01% on the portfolio.
It is a holding company engaged in making investments into international television and broadband companies. Through its subsidiaries, it offers telecommunication, broadband services and cable network.
GuruFocus gives the stock a profitability and growth rating of 5 out of 10. The ROE of 17.25% and ROA of 2.54% are outperforming 51% of the companies in the Global Pay TV industry. Financial strength has a rating of 3 out of 10 with a cash-debt ratio of 0.06 that is below the industry median of 0.41.
The largest shareholder of the company among the gurus is Dodge & Cox with 3.35% of outstanding shares followed by First Eagle Investment (Trades, Portfolio) 2.08%, Davis with 1.31%, Buffett with 0.86% and Greenberg with 0.79%.
Disclosure: I do not own any shares of any stocks mentioned in this article.
