Mario Gabelli (Trades, Portfolio), founder and CEO of GAMCO Investors Inc. (GBL, Financial), disclosed last week his top five buys for the third quarter were Carbon Black Inc. (CBLK, Financial), Pivotal Software Inc. (PVTL, Financial), Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (GWR, Financial), Sotheby's (BID, Financial) and Acadia Communications Inc. (ACIA, Financial).
Gabelli, one of our Value Conference speakers for this year, graduated summa con laude from Fordham University’s College of Business Administration and did an MBA at Columbia University Graduate School of Business. The GAMCO CEO seeks companies that are trading below intrinsic value and have a growth catalyst.
As of quarter-end, Gabelli’s $12 billion equity portfolio contains 895 stocks, of which 51 represent new holdings. The top three sectors in terms of portfolio weight are industrials, consumer cyclical and financial services.
Carbon Black
Gabelli purchased 341,394 shares of Carbon Black, giving the position 0.07% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $22.06 during the quarter.
On Oct. 8, VMware Inc. (VMW, Financial) completed the acquisition of Carbon Black, a Waltham, Massachusetts-based application software company. Carbon Black CEO Patrick Morley, who will run VMware’s new security business unit, said Carbon Black collected and analyzed endpoint data to understand cyberattack behaviors and help customers become more resilient against cyberattacks.
Pivotal Software
Gabelli purchased 293,909 shares of Pivotal Software, giving the position 0.04% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $12.25 during the quarter.
According to GuruFocus, the San Francisco-based software and services company has an equity-to-asset ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, both outperforming over 64% of global competitors.
Genesee & Wyoming
Gabelli purchased 37,741 shares of Genesee & Wyoming, giving the position 0.03% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $110.08 during the quarter.
The Darien, Connecticut-based company operates short-line and regional freight railroads in North America. GuruFocus ranks the company’s profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include profit margins that outperform over 73% of global competitors.
Sotheby's
Gabelli purchased 55,162 shares of Sotheby's, giving the position 0.03% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $57.92 during the quarter.
The New York-based company, which was acquired by BidFair USA in June, operates two businesses: Agency, which provides an auction space for fine art, decorative art, wine, jewelry and collectibles, and Finance, which provides financing activities for collectors and art dealers. GuruFocus ranks the company’s profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a return on equity near a 10-year high of 23.31% and operating margins that are outperforming 94.81% of global competitors despite contracting over the past five years.
Acadia Communications
Gabelli purchased 40,608 shares of Acadia Communications, giving the position 0.02% equity portfolio weight. Shares averaged $63.09 during the quarter.
The Maynard, Massachusetts-based company manufactures optical interconnect products used in offering communication services. GuruFocus ranks the company’s profitability 7 out of 10: Even though operating margins are outperforming just 54.92% of global competitors, net margins and returns on assets are outperforming 72.78% and 68.20% of global communication equipment companies.
Disclosure: No positions.
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