Ariel Investments, an investment management company, released its “Ariel Global Fund” first-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. In the first quarter, the Ariel Global fund appreciated +7.35% lagging behind the +8.20% gain of its primary benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Index, but ahead of the +6.85% return of its secondary benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Value Index. The upward rally of developed markets continued in the first quarter of 2024. The rally was driven by investors’ excitement over artificial intelligence (AI), a rebound in bank lending growth, decreased energy costs, a rise in global manufacturing activity, recent structural reforms in Japan, and the near-term possibility of a rate-cutting cycle in the U.S. and Europe. In addition, you can check the top 5 holdings of the fund to know its best picks in 2024.
Ariel Global Fund highlighted stocks like CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS), in the first quarter 2024 investor letter. CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) is a US-based health solutions provider. The one-month return of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) was 6.10%, and its shares lost 12.19% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On June 13, 2024, CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) stock closed at $61.03 per share with a market capitalization of $76.615 billion.
Ariel Global Fund stated the following regarding CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) in its first quarter 2024 investor letter:
“We bought American healthcare company, CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS), following recent concerns related to potential new laws affecting Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs)—intermediaries that negotiate drug prices between insurers and pharmacies—and issues with pricing in its Medicare Advantage plans, a type of health insurance for senior citizens. Shares presented an attractive entry point after the company lowered its 2024 outlook. While investor apprehension regarding the new laws appears to have eased, utilization of Medicare Advantage plans is also stabilizing. Our purchase of CVS reflects our efforts to capitalize on temporary setbacks and secure positions in companies poised for a rebound.”
A row of shelves in a retail pharmacy, demonstrating the variety of drugs and over-the-counter products.
CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 54 hedge fund portfolios held CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) at the end of the first quarter which was 67 in the previous quarter. The first quarter revenues of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) were approximately $88 billion, an increase of about 4% compared to Q1 2023. While we acknowledge the potential of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
In another article, we discussed CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) and shared the list of most profitable insurance companies in the world. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
