Stanley Druckenmiller is often known for working closely with George Soros to ‘break the bank of England’ when they shorted the pound in 1992 and crashed it.
However, Druckenmiller is a very accomplished investor in his own right, and his Duquesne Capital Management fund is one of the best performing funds in history. It grew from $1 million in 1981 to $23 billion by the time he closed it in 2010, delivering an average annual return of about 30%.
Today, Druckenmüller runs a family trust, Duquesne Family Office, and you can still follow his steps via quarterly 13-F filings with the SEC. You might be surprised to learn that his portfolio is highly concentrated, with his top four stocks making up almost half of his holdings.
1.Microsoft
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) was Duquesne’s largest holding at the end of the fourth quarter, representing 12.2% of the company’s portfolio at $408.4 million, or 1,086,120 shares.
Duquesne added 68,860 shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter, reinforcing his strong belief in the tech giant, and the value of that stake, assuming he owns it, has continued to grow this year.
Druckenmiller hasn’t commented on why he owns Microsoft, but there are many good reasons to own the stock. Microsoft seems like a natural choice to capitalize on the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, thanks to its partnership with OpenAI, its diversification across multiple business areas, and its leadership position in enterprise software.
2. Coupang
Druckenmiller’s second-largest holding might surprise you. Are Coupang (NYSE: CPNG)the South Korean e-commerce giant that resembles Amazon in some ways.
The company ended the year with Coupang representing about 11% of the portfolio, or a $371 million position. Druckenmiller was bullish on Coupang in the fourth quarter and bought more than 2 million shares of the e-commerce company.
Coupang is an intriguing opportunity because there is a lot of room for growth as it expands into new markets and adds new product lines. The stock also looks well priced for its growth potential, and Coupang is using AI to automate its warehouses.
3. Nvidia
Druckenmiller originally gambled on the AI ​​gold rush by going long Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) in the fourth quarter of 2022. But he started unwinding that bet in the fourth quarter, selling 257,162 shares of the AI ​​chip leader. Nevertheless, the company remained Duquesne’s third-largest holding company at the end of 2023.
The position of 617,494 shares represented 9.1% of the total portfolio. Druckenmuller also had call options on nearly 500,000 shares, giving his company additional upside exposure.
Nvidia has become a popular bet among both professional and retail investors. The company has exploded over the past year as the stock most closely tied to the generative AI revolution.
Druckenmiller seemed to believe Nvidia’s rally had gone far enough, although selling off the stock in the fourth quarter proved short-sighted as the shares are up about 75% this year.
4. Eli Lilly
Finally, Druckenmiller’s fourth largest holding comes not from the technology sector, but from the technology sector Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.
His company owned $235 million worth of stock at the end of last year, although he sold about 11% of his position in the fourth quarter.
Eli Lilly’s weight-loss drug Mounjaro was one of the driving forces behind the share price rise last year. It is now the company’s best-selling drug with sales of $1.8 billion last quarter.
Management and analysts have high expectations for Mounjaro. If the weight-loss drug continues on its current trajectory, the stock should only make gains from here.
Should you follow Druckenmiller’s example?
Following an investor without doing your own research, even if they are a world-renowned investor, is a bad idea. An ultra-rich family fund like Duquesne has resources and strategies that are not available to individual investors.
That said, the top spots can still shed light on interesting companies. And in this case, Druckenmiller reminds us that even mature, established tech giants like Nvidia and Microsoft can achieve market-beating returns thanks to their ability to capitalize on secular tailwinds like AI.
The next Duquesne Family Office 13-F (for the first quarter of 2024) will be released in mid-May.
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Jeremy Bowman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool holds and recommends positions in Coupang, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls to Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls to Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Nearly 50% of Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller’s Portfolio Is Invested in These Four Stocks, originally published by The Motley Fool
