Hedge fund giant Third Point bets big on AI: Q2 establishes positions in Apple and ASML, increases holdings in TSMC

According to the disclosure from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) obtained by Zhitong Finance APP, the hedge fund Third Point, owned by billionaire investor Daniel Loeb, known as the "Wall Street Titan", submitted its second quarter (Q2) holdings report (13F) as of June 30, 2024. Statistics show that Third Point's total holdings value in the second quarter was $8.74 billion, compared to $7.85 billion in the previous quarter, representing an 11% increase. The fund added 11 new stocks to its portfolio, increased holdings in 5 stocks, while completely exiting 7 stocks and reducing holdings in 8 stocks. The top ten holdings accounted for 64.92% of the total value. In the top five major holdings, Amazon (AMZN.US) became the top holding with 5.1 million shares, with a market value of approximately $986 million, accounting for 11.28% of the portfolio, with no change in the number of shares held compared to the previous quarter. Pacific Gas and Electric (PCG.US) ranked second with 53.75 million shares, a market value of approximately $938 million, accounting for 10.74% of the portfolio, a decrease of 7.10% in the number of shares held compared to the previous quarter. Microsoft (MSFT.US) ranked third with 1.58 million shares, a market value of approximately $706 million, accounting for 8.08% of the portfolio, a decrease of 10.48% in the number of shares held compared to the previous quarter. Meta Platforms (META.US) and Danaher (DHR.US) ranked fourth and fifth respectively, with market values of $555 million and $512 million. It is worth noting that in the second quarter, Third Point initiated positions in Apple (AAPL.US), large connector manufacturer Amphenol (APH.US), ASML (ASML.US), Micron Technology (MU.US), and exited positions in Goldman Sachs (GS.US), S&P Global (SPGI.US), Marvell Technology (MRVL.US) From the perspective of changes in the position ratio, the top five buying targets are: Apple, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM.US), KB Home (KBH.US), and Roper Technologies (ROP.US). The top five selling targets are: Bath & Body Works (BBWI.US), S&P Global, Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL.US), Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Microsoft. According to the shareholder letter released by Third Point LLC on May 1st, nearly half of the stock investment portfolio in the fund's latest holdings is closely related to artificial intelligence (AI) technology, including Google leading the global AI technology development and Taiwan Semiconductor, known as the "king of global chip manufacturing". Loeb wrote in the letter: "Unlike past technological paradigm shifts, this new technology is very favorable for old-school tech companies that are leveraging massive capital and intellectual firepower to win the AI arms race."