Bill Nygren (Trades, Portfolio)’s Oakmark fund beat the S&P 500 for the first quarter with a 5% gain compared to the index’s 2% rise. In his first quarter letter, he attributed the strong quarter primarily to Forest Laboratories being acquired by Actavis Plc (ACT, Financial), and large exposure to auto-related cyclical and financials.
Nygren is the manager of the Oakmark Select Fund (OAKLX, Financial), the Oakmark Fund (OAKMX, Financial) and the Oakmark Global Select Fund (OAKWX, Financial) at the Oakmark Funds. Oakmark employs a long-term, value philosophy, buying stocks at what are thought to be discounts to intrinsic business value.
Nygren told CNBC on April 15 that Oakmark’s favorite sector has been and continues to be financials, where he believes many banks and institutions continue to be undervalued. In the first quarter, he bought four new stocks for his Oakmark Fund: General Mills Inc. (GIS, Financial), Sanofi (SNY, Financial), Citigroup (C, Financial) and Diageo PLC (DEO, Financial).
General Mills Inc. (GIS, Financial)
Bill Nygren (Trades, Portfolio) purchased 2,173,000 shares of General Mills Inc. in the first quarter, when the price averaged $50 per share. This equates to 0.9% of the portfolio.
General Mills Inc. was incorporated in Delaware in 1928. General Mills Inc. has a market cap of $33.33 billion; its shares were traded at around $54.24 with a P/E ratio of 19.80 and P/S ratio of 2.0. The dividend yield of General Mills Inc. stocks is 2.90%. General Mills Inc. had an annual average earnings growth of 6.50% over the past 10 years. GuruFocus rated General Mills Inc. the business predictability rank of 5-star.
Nygren purchased 2.6 million shares of Sanofi in the first quarter, when the stock’s price averaged $51. The holding represents 1.1% of his portfolio.
Sanofi was incorporated under the laws of France in 1994. Sanofi has a market cap of $140.35 billion; its shares were traded at around $52.99 with a P/E ratio of 26.90 and P/S ratio of 3.10. The dividend yield of Sanofi stocks is 3.60%. Sanofi had an annual average earnings growth of 3.80% over the past 10 years.
Nygren acquired 3.6 million Citigroup shares, when the share price averaged $50 a share. The holding is 1.4% of the portfolio.
Citigroup Inc. was incorporated in 1988 under the laws of the State of Delaware. Citigroup Inc. has a market cap of $143.6 billion; its shares were traded at around $47.27 with a P/E ratio of 10.80 and P/S ratio of 1.90. The dividend yield of Citigroup Inc. stocks is 0.10%.
Nygren purchased 1.95 million shares of Diageo, which had a first quarter average share price of $125. His largest new position, it occupies 1.9% of the portfolio.
Diageo Plc was incorporated on Oct. 22, 1886, in England and Wales. Diageo Plc has a market cap of $80.15 billion; its shares were traded at around $127.67 with a P/E ratio of 19.20 and P/S ratio of 4.20. The dividend yield of Diageo Plc stocks is 2.50%. Diageo Plc had an annual average earnings growth of 8.10% over the past 10 years. GuruFocus rated Diageo Plc the business predictability rank of 4-star.
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