This article is part of a series that provides an ongoing analysis of the changes made to George Soros’s 13F stock portfolio on a quarterly basis. It is based on George Soros’s regulatory 13F Form filed on 5/15/2024. Please visit our Tracking Soros Fund Management Holdings article for an idea on his investment philosophy and our previous update for the fund’s moves during Q4 2023.
Soros Fund Management invests globally and the long positions in the US market reported in the 13F filings represent ~25% of the overall portfolio. The 13F portfolio value decreased from $7.65B to $6.02B this quarter. The number of positions remained steady at 193. Very small stock positions and large debt holdings together account for around two-thirds of the 13F holdings. The investments are diversified with a large number of very small equity positions, a small number of large equity positions, and a few large debt holdings. The focus of this article is on the larger equity positions. The top three individual stocks held as of Q1 2024 were Alphabet, AerCap, and Cloudflare Puts. To learn about Soros’ distinct trading style and philosophy, check out his “The Alchemy of Finance” and other works.
New stakes:
Cloudflare Inc. (NET) Puts: The 2.41% short position through NET Puts was established as the underlying traded at prices between ~$76 and ~$108. The stock currently trades well below that range at $67.43.
Cerevel Therapeutics (CERE): CERE is a 1.36% of the portfolio position established at prices between $40.88 and $43.27. The stock currently trades just below that range at $40.63.
Aramark (ARMK): ARMK 1.11%. The small 1.11% ARMK position was established this quarter at prices between $27.51 and $32.55. It is now at $32.06.
Confluent Inc. (CFLT) Calls, Synchrony Financial (SYF) Puts, and Westrock (WRK): These very small (less than ~1% of the portfolio each) stakes were established during the quarter.
Stake Disposals:
Apple (AAPL) Puts: AAPL was a short position through Puts established during Q3 2023. AAPL traded at prices between ~$170 and ~$196. It is currently at ~$194. The last quarter saw a ~20% selling as AAPL traded between ~$167 and ~$198. The stake was disposed this quarter as AAPL traded at prices between ~$169 and ~$195.
PDD Holdings (PDD) Puts: PDD was a short position through Puts established during Q3 2023. PDD traded at prices between ~$68 and ~$103 and it is now at ~$147. The last quarter saw a ~50% selling as PDD traded between ~$98 and ~$150. The stake was disposed this quarter as PDD traded at prices between ~$110 and ~$151.
SPDR Index Euro STOXX ETF (FEZ): FEZ was a small 0.86% of the portfolio stake established during Q4 2022 at prices between ~$30.50 and ~$41. The stake was disposed this quarter at prices between $45.71 and $52.79. The stock currently trades at $53.09.
Splunk (SPLK), Calls & Puts: SPLK was a 1.15% net long stake in SPLK. The long portion was purchased at prices between ~$83 and ~$147. The short stake through Puts that partially offset the long portion was purchased as the underlying traded between ~$146 and ~$153. Cisco (CSCO) acquired Splunk in a $157 per share cash transaction that closed in March, thereby eliminating this position.
Capital One Financial (COF) Puts, SPDR S&P 500 Index (SPY) and Spirit Airlines (SAVE) Puts: These small short stakes through Puts established last quarter was disposed this quarter.
Stake Increases:
Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) Puts: The 6.31% of the portfolio short stake through Puts was established during Q4 2022 as QQQ traded between ~$260 and ~$294. The next quarter saw a one-third reduction as the underlying traded between ~$262 and ~$321. Q2 2023 saw a ~160% stake increase as QQQ traded at prices between ~$310 and ~$370. That was followed by another two-thirds increase in the next quarter as QQQ traded at prices between ~$354 and ~$385. The last quarter saw the position reduced by ~60% as the underlying traded between ~$344 and ~$412. The position was increased by 42% this quarter as QQQ traded at prices between ~$396 and ~$446. QQQ currently trades at ~$453.
Alphabet Inc. (GOOG): GOOG is a 3.74% of the portfolio position purchased in Q2 2019 at prices between ~$52 and ~$64 and reduced by ~50% in Q1 2020 at prices between ~$53 and ~$76. Q4 2020 saw another similar selling at prices between ~$71 and ~$86. There was a ~250% stake increase in the next quarter at prices between ~$86 and ~$107. H2 2021 had seen a ~50% reduction at prices between ~$133 and ~$151. Next quarter saw a one-third increase at prices between ~$127 and ~$148. That was followed with a ~80% stake increase during Q4 2022 at prices between ~$83.50 and ~$105. The last several quarters saw selling while this quarter saw the position increased by 22% at prices between ~$133 and ~$155. The stock is now at ~$174.
Note: Alphabet is a frequently traded stock in Soros’ portfolio.
American Equity Inv. Life (AEL): The 1.79% AEL merger-arbitrage stake was established during Q3 2023 at prices between ~$52 and ~$54. There was a ~23% stake increase in the last quarter at prices between ~$53 and ~$56. The position was increased by 17% this quarter at prices between $54.78 and $55.85. Brookfield acquired AEL in a $55 per share cash-and-stock deal ($38.85 cash and 0.49707 BAM stock) that closed in May.
Booking Holdings (BKNG): BKNG is a small ~1% stake that was increased by a ~25% over the last two quarters at prices between ~$2743 and ~$3902. The stock currently trades at ~$3764.
Stake Decreases:
AerCap Holdings (AER): The 2.84% AER stake was increased by ~120% during Q3 2023 at prices between ~$60 and ~$67 and the stock currently trades at $93.16. There was a one-third increase in the last quarter at prices between ~$57.50 and ~$75. The stake was decreased by 20% this quarter at prices between ~$71 and ~$88.
Novo Nordisk (NVO): The 1.70% NVO position was established during Q3 2023 at prices between ~$75.40 and ~$100 and the stock currently trades at ~$136. The stake was decreased by 49% this quarter at prices between ~$101 and ~$135.
CRH plc (CRH): CRH is a 1.14% stake that was reduced by roughly one-third in the last quarter at prices between ~$52 and ~$69. The stake was decreased by 46% this quarter at prices between ~$66 and ~$87. The stock is now at ~$79.
Alibaba Group Holdings (BABA) & Calls, Amazon.com (AMZN), Jacobs Solutions (J), SPDR S&P 500 Index (SPY) Puts, Uber Technologies (UBER), and Cboe Global Markets (CBOE): These positions (less than ~1.5% of the portfolio each) were reduced this quarter.
Kept Steady:
Liberty Broadband (LBRDK): LBRDK stake is now relatively small at 1.32% of the portfolio. The original large position was established in Q2 2016 at prices between $55 and $60.50. Q4 2019 saw a ~20% selling at prices between $103 and $125. Q1 2021 saw a similar reduction at prices between ~$142 and ~$157. The four quarters through Q3 2022 saw another roughly two-thirds reduction at prices between ~$74 and ~$191. The stock currently trades at ~$54.
The spreadsheet below highlights Soros’s significantly large 13F positions as of Q1 2024:
Source: John Vincent. Data constructed from Soros Fund Management’s 13F filings for Q4 2023 and Q1 2024.
Editor's Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.
John Vincent
Focused on analyzing 13F reports & building tools to help DIY investors generate absolute returnsthrough exploiting inefficiency, volatility, and momentum.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of GOOGL, AMZN, AAPL either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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