Scraping together enough coin to win the annual luncheon auction with Warren Buffett is probably beyond the means of most investors. With the proceeds going to benefit charity, last year's winning bidder forked over $1.68 million for the privilege.
Feast or famine
So maybe we can't afford to break bread with the greats, but we can peek at their stock ideas through their SEC filings. What we'll do here is pore over the reports from some of the top investors to see which stocks they've chosen as their best investments. We'll then check in with Motley Fool CAPS members to see if they agree.
First, a few caveats ...
- There's a delay from when the stocks were bought and when these investors file their paperwork, so they might have sold the stocks since.
- And these legends may be hot investors now, but that can change. Bill Miller was a wunderkind for beating the market 15 years in a row -- then he went cold for three. He came back in 2009, but we don't know what 2010 will bring.
Contrary to popular opinion
So do further research, but in the meantime, let's take a look again at hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb of Third Point. Back in March, when we first looked at his cutting wit, we noted he had taken positions in distressed financials Citigroup
Fund: Third Point
Number of Stocks Owned: 41
Top Five Holdings: Liberty Media, OSI Pharmaceuticals, Airgas, Walgreen, Coca-Cola Enterprises
Top Sectors: Health care, industrials, technology, financials
Like a number of the investing legends we've looked at, Loeb's portfolio is relatively concentrated, but there has been a lot of turnover, so we'll take a closer look at some of the stocks to see what CAPS members have to say.
|
Company |
Average Price |
Current Price |
% Change |
CAPS Rating
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Toyota |
$79.86 |
$72.01 |
(9.8%) |
** |
|
Lear |
$72.40 |
$66.12 |
(8.7%) |
*** |
|
VIVUS |
$9.06 |
$11.66 |
28.7% |
*** |
Source: GuruFocus and CAPS.
Price is what you pay
While Toyota managers might be thankful that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has drawn attention away from its own problems, there is still a string of mechanical failures that will haunt it if it doesn't come up with a fix. The latest decision to stop selling its popular Lexus sedan because of steering malfunctions highlights just how deep the problems run. Ford
Highly rated CAPS All-Star addedupon thinks that as problematic as the safety issues have been, brand loyalty remains strong.
Toyota fosters brand loyalty among consumers nearly as faithful as Apple! It will reemerge greater than ever not only because of its history but because it has staked out the best green strategy via hybrid model expansion with only token involvement with the dubious EV plug-ins.
Loeb's bet on the auto industry also might include companies exiting bankruptcy protection as ones likely to roar ahead. Auto parts supplier Lear became a key holding of his portfolio while Ford is stepping over Toyota in the line of top carmakers. As a supplier to Ford, Lear will go along for the ride, and the CAPS community agrees: Of the members rating Lear, 93% believe it will outperform the market.
Fattening the calf
Weight-loss therapies present a big opportunity, and VIVUS, Arena Pharmaceuticals
The weight loss market is huge and if [VIVUS] is succesful in getting their weight losing drug approved their stock will soar.
Value is what you get
Become an investing legend yourself by starting your own research on these stocks on Motley Fool CAPS. Read a company's financial reports, scrutinize key data and charts, and examine the comments your fellow investors have made, all from a stock's CAPS page.
Sign up today for the completely free service and tell us whether these stocks are as good a value as these big names think they are.
