George Soros' net worth is close to $6.7 billion, according to Forbes. For years, he ran one of the most successful hedge funds in the world.
Since 2011, though, Soros' investing activities have been done through his family office, Soros Fund Management.
Like fellow multibillionaire investor Warren Buffett, Soros is now 92 years old. Many people continue to follow where Soros is investing his money today, just as they do with Buffett. So where is his money parked these days? Nearly one-third of Soros' portfolio is invested in just 10 stocks.
Image source: Getty Images.
Soros' top 10
What stocks rank in Soros' top 10? It's an eclectic mix.
| Stock | Shares Owned | Percent of Portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| Horizon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HZNP) | 2.86 million | 5.54% |
| Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) | 14.34 million | 4.5% |
| iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (NYSEMKT:LQD) | 2.42 million | 4.34% |
| First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) | 8.54 million | 3.56% |
| Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) | 1.76 million | 2.64% |
| Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) | 3.39 million | 2.38% |
| Altra Industrial Motion (NASDAQ:AIMC) | 2 million | 2.03% |
| Bowlero (NYSE:BOWL) | 8.15 million | 1.87% |
| Liberty Broadband (NASDAQ:LBRD-A) | 1.39 million | 1.8% |
| Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) | 644,095 | 1.45% |
Data source: Soros Fund Management 13-F filing. Table created by author.
Soros is definitely more diversified than Buffett. While 10 stocks make up 30.1% of Soros' total portfolio, the top 10 holdings for Berkshire Hathaway, including stocks owned by its subsidiary New England Capital Management, comprise a whopping 87.3% of Buffett's total portfolio.
The two investors also have very different preferences in stocks. There's no overlap whatsoever between the top 10 holdings of Soros and Buffett. And there aren't many common positions looking at the full portfolios of the two multibillionaires.
Newfound bullishness
Perhaps the most striking thing about Soros' top 10 positions is how many new stocks make the list. His biggest holding, Horizon Therapeutics, wasn't in the portfolio at all until the fourth quarter of 2022.
Depending on exactly when Soros bought the biotech stock, he could have already made a tidy profit. Shares of Horizon have skyrocketed nearly 80% since the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2022. Most of this huge gain came after Horizon disclosed that it's in talks with Amgen and Sanofi about potential acquisition offers.
Soros also initiated new positions in the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond exchange-traded fund (ETF), financial services company First Horizon, and power-transmission products manufacturer Altra Industrial Motion during the fourth quarter. The iShares ETF technically isn't a stock, but it trades like one.
Also, one of Soros' major holdings now wouldn't have cracked the top 10 just a few months ago. The billionaire investor added significantly to his stake in Alphabet Class A shares in the fourth quarter. He also initiated a new stake in the tech giant's Class C shares.
The best pick?
Different investors will likely have different opinions about which of Soros' top 10 is the best pick. I suspect that value investors might prefer First Horizon, with its shares trading at under 12 times expected earnings. Income investors could be drawn more to the iShares corporate bond ETF, with its yield of over 3.1%.
Wall Street analysts are enthusiastic about bowling center operator Bowlero. All of the analysts surveyed by Refinitiv rate the stock as either a buy or a strong buy.
However, I think that the best pick in Soros' top 10 is Alphabet. The concerns that Google Search will be undermined by Microsoft's integration of OpenAI's ChatGPT with Bing are overblown, in my view. Google Cloud continues to gain market share. Alphabet's advertising revenue will bounce back. And the company will almost certainly remain one of the leaders in the fast-growing artificial intelligence arena.
Soros was shrewd to increase his stake in Alphabet by more than 73% in the fourth quarter. I predict the move will pay off nicely for him over time.
10 stocks we like better than Alphabet
When our award-winning analyst team has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*
They just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Alphabet wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys.
*Stock Advisor returns as of February 8, 2023
Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Keith Speights has positions in Alphabet, Berkshire Hathaway, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Berkshire Hathaway, Microsoft, and Salesforce. The Motley Fool recommends Amgen and Liberty Broadband. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
/Microsoft%20Corporation%20logo%20on%20phone-by%20rafapress%20via%20Shuterstock.jpg)