Hedge fund managers and Wall Street analysts have several things in common. They watch the stock market like a hawk. They analyze financial data and industry trends to inform their decisions. They make public calls on individual stocks that can receive significant attention.
However, the opinions of hedge fund managers and analysts often diverge. Take billionaire David Tepper, for example. He recently sold shares of Wall Street favorites Google parent Alphabet (GOOG +0.29%) (GOOGL +0.26%) and Amazon (AMZN +0.23%) and is piling into another artificial intelligence (AI) stock instead. Does Tepper know something Wall Street doesn't?
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Going against Wall Street with two magnificent stocks
It shouldn't be surprising that Wall Street likes most of the so-called "Magnificent Seven" stocks. Alphabet and Amazon are no exceptions.
Of the 66 analysts surveyed by S&P Global (SPGI 0.82%) in December who cover Alphabet, 57 rated the stock as a "buy" or "strong buy." The other nine analysts recommended holding Alphabet. No analyst thought selling the stock was a good idea.
NASDAQ: GOOG
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There's an even greater enthusiasm on Wall Street about Amazon. All but one of the 67 analysts surveyed by S&P Global rated the stock as a "buy" or "strong buy." The three outliers recommended holding it. The average 12-month price target for Amazon reflects a potential upside of 26%.
Tepper trimmed his Appaloosa hedge fund's positions in both stocks in the third quarter of 2025. He sold 7.4% of the fund's stake in Amazon and 7.5% of its Alphabet shares. Granted, these trades were made before the most recent S&P Global analyst surveys. However, Wall Street's views about Alphabet and Amazon have been consistently bullish for months. Tepper clearly went against the prevailing consensus in the analyst community about these two stocks.
NASDAQ: AMZN
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Loading up on another AI stock
While the billionaire hedge fund manager sold shares of Alphabet and Amazon in Q3, he loaded up on another AI stock. Tepper increased Appaloosa's position in Qualcomm (QCOM +1.58%) by a whopping 255.7% last quarter.
Qualcomm is best known for its Snapdragon chips, which are used in smartphones and other devices. The company is leveraging its leading industry position to be a top player in edge AI (running AI on local devices rather than in the cloud). From generative AI to agentic AI, Qualcomm aims for its technology to be the best on the devices consumers use most.
NASDAQ: QCOM
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Additionally, Qualcomm will soon compete with Nvidia (NVDA +0.88%) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 2.06%) in the AI accelerator market for data centers. The company plans to launch its AI200 chips in 2026, followed by the AI250 chips in 2027.
What does Wall Street think about Qualcomm? Opinions are mixed. Of the 36 analysts surveyed by S&P Global in December, 16 rated Qualcomm as a "buy" or "strong buy." Another 19 recommended holding the stock, with one analyst giving it an "underperform" rating.
Does Tepper know something Wall Street doesn't?
Let's circle back to the original question: Does Tepper know something Wall Street doesn't? The short answer is... maybe. The billionaire investor may have picked up on something about Alphabet's, Amazon's, and Qualcomm's prospects that analysts have overlooked.
However, I wouldn't make too much of Tepper's sales of Alphabet and Amazon in Q3. Appaloosa still owns significant positions in both stocks. Amazon remains the hedge fund's second-largest holding, while Alphabet ranks as its fifth-largest holding.
On the other hand, I believe his aggressive buying of Qualcomm shares is noteworthy. For what it's worth, I suspect Tepper's bullish view on the stock is warranted. With Qualcomm's attractive valuation (its forward price-to-earnings ratio is only 13.8) and growth opportunities, I side with the billionaire rather than Wall Street on this AI stock.
