GAMCO Investors leader Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio) released his fourth-quarter portfolio on Monday, listing 40 new positions.
Managing a portfolio of 823 stocks, Gabelli and his team invest in companies that will generate long-term growth of capital. His vast portfolio is largely composed of securities in the industrials and consumer cyclical sectors. According to its fact sheet, the Gabelli Asset Fund AAA slightly underperformed the S&P 500 Index in 2017 with a return of 20.16%.
The guru’s top five new buys for the quarter are Advanced Accelerator Applications SA (AAAP, Financial), Amplify Snack Brands Inc. (BETR, Financial), BroadSoft Inc. (BSFT, Financial), General Cable Corp. (BGC, Financial) and Barracuda Networks Inc. (CUDA, Financial).
Advanced Accelerator Applications
Gabelli’s largest new investment for the quarter was 102,066 shares of Advanced Accelerator for an average price of $77.58 per share, giving it 0.05% portfolio space.
The French radiopharmaceutical diagnostics company, which specializes in molecular nuclear medicine, has a market cap of $3.6 billion; its shares were trading around $81.45 on Wednesday with a price-book (P/B) ratio of 11.39 and a price-sales (P/S) ratio of 23.90.
The Peter Lynch chart below suggests the stock is overpriced as it is trading above its fair value.
GuruFocus rated the company’s financial strength 7 of 10 and its profitability and growth 3 of 10. The company does not pay a dividend.
Gabelli holds 0.23% of the company’s outstanding shares.
Amplify Snack Brands
The guru purchased 449,800 shares of Amplify Snack Brands for an average price of $7.22 per share, expanding the portfolio 0.03%.
The Austin, Texas-based snack foods company, which owns the Skinny Pop popcorn brand, was acquired by The Hershey Co. (HSY, Financial) in December in a $1.6 billion deal, which equated to $12 per share. The deal was completed on Jan. 31.
Discovery Group I, LLC was Amplify’s largest guru shareholder with 6.41% of outstanding shares. Gabelli held 0.59% of the company’s outstanding shares.
BroadSoft
The investor bought 79,650 shares of BroadSoft for an average price of $54.46 per share, impacting the portfolio by 0.03%.
The Gaithersburg, Maryland-based software company was acquired by Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) for $55 per share. The $1.9 billion deal was completed on Feb. 2.
Of the gurus invested in BroadSoft, Steven Cohen (Trades, Portfolio) had the largest holding with 1% of outstanding shares. Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio) was also a shareholder.
General Cable
Gabelli invested in 154,100 shares of General Cable for an average price of $23.66 per share, giving it 0.03% portfolio space.
The Highland Heights, Kentucky-based manufacturer of fiber optic cables has a market cap of $1.49 billion; its shares were trading around $29.48 on Wednesday with a price-book ratio of 12.21 and a price-sales ratio of 0.40.
According to the Peter Lynch chart below, the stock is overpriced as it is trading above its fair value.
General Cable’s financial strength and profitability and growth were both rated 4 of 10 by GuruFocus. The company’s trailing dividend yield and forward dividend yield are both 2.43%.
With 3.46% of outstanding shares, Richard Pzena (Trades, Portfolio) is the company’s largest guru shareholder. Royce, Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio) and Barrow, Hanley, Mewhinney & Strauss also own the stock.
Barracuda Networks
The guru bought 90,933 shares of Barracuda Networks for an average price of $24.77 per share, expanding the portfolio 0.02%.
The Campbell, California-based information technology security company has a market cap of $1.48 billion; its shares were trading around $27.54 on Wednesday with a price-earnings (P/E) ratio of 98.32, a price-book ratio of 38.67 and a price-sales ratio of 4.04.
Based on the Peter Lynch chart below, the stock appears to be trading above its fair value, indicating it is overpriced.
GuruFocus rated Barracuda’s financial strength 8 of 10 and its profitability and growth 6 of 10. The company does not pay a dividend.
Of the gurus invested in Barracuda, Simons has the largest position with 5.09% of outstanding shares. PRIMECAP Management (Trades, Portfolio), George Soros (Trades, Portfolio) and Jeremy Grantham (Trades, Portfolio) are also shareholders.
Other trades
Other new positions Gabelli started during the quarter include Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (BWLD, Financial), Aptiv PLC (APTV, Financial), CalAtlantic Group Inc. (CAA, Financial) Entellus Medical Inc. (ENTL, Financial) and Regal Entertainment Group (RGC, Financial).
Disclosure: No positions.
