50 new pitches found in hedge fund reports this week
Thanks for reading Stock Analysis Compilation! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. 🆕 New on the site: every chart fund managers publish, on one page The best charts in fund letters and research are usually buried deep inside a PDF. We pull them out and put them side by side — macro, rates, earnings, valuations — each one credited to the firm that made it, with the original one click away. Free, no account needed. 👉 Browse the charts → 🔹 AAON, Inc. (AAON US) by Baron Real Estate Income Fund 🔹 Altius Minerals (ALS CN) by Liontrust Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund 🔹 Amrize Ltd. (AMRZ SW) by Artisan Partners International Value Strategy 🔹 Apple (AAPL US) by Wedgewood Partners U.S. Large Cap Growth Strategy 🔹 Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (AWI US) by Baron Real Estate Fund 🔹 ASML Holding N.V. (ASML NA) by Royal London AM Global Equity Diversified Fund (IRL) 🔹 ASML Holding NV (ASML NA) by Brown Advisory Global Leaders Sustainable Fund 🔹 ATI Inc (ATI US) by Brown Advisory Mid-Cap Growth Strategy 🔹 Autonation (AN US) by Alluvium AM Conventum 🔹 BE Semiconductor Industries (BESI NA) by Baillie Gifford Global Alpha 🔹 Boston Scientific Corporation (BSX US) by Brown Advisory U.S. Flexible Equity Fund 🔹 Brambles (BXB AU) by Harris Associates International Strategy 🔹 Carrier Global Corporation (CARR US) by Aristotle Value Equity Strategy 🔹 Clearwater Paper Corporation (CLW US) by Longleaf Partners Small-Cap Fund 🔹 Compagnie Financière Richemont (CFRUY SW) by GreensKeeper Value Fund 🔹 Corpay (CPAY US) by Aristotle Small/Mid Cap Equity Strategy 🔹 Cytokinetics (CYTK US) by JAG Capital Management Small Mid Cap Growth Strategy 🔹 DexCom (DXCM US) by Liontrust Balanced Fund 🔹 Diploma (DPLM LN) by Aoris International Fund 🔹 DSV A/S (DSV DC) by The London Company International Equity Strategy 🔹 Exsitec by Kavaljer Quality Focus 🔹 Flowco (FLOC US) by FPA Queens Road Small Cap Value Fund 🔹 Fraport (FRA GR) by L1 Capital Long Short Fund 🔹 FuboTV (FUBO US) by White Brook Capital Ethical Strategies 🔹 GE Aerospace (GE US) by Brown Advisory Global Leaders Sustainable Fund 🔹 Haemonetics Corporation (HAE US) by Ariel Investments Small Cap Value Strategy 🔹 Honeywell Aerospace (HON US) by Broyhill Equity Composite 🔹 Honeywell Automation (HONA US) by Cambiar Investors Opportunity Fund 🔹 InnovAge Holding Corp. (INNV US) by Argent Capital Management Focused Small Cap Strategy 🔹 KLA (KLAC US) by Baillie Gifford Positive Change Strategy 🔹 Lam Research (LRCX US) by Baillie Gifford Long Term Global Growth 🔹 Lennar Corporation Class A (LEN US) by Brown Advisory Global Value Select Strategy 🔹 Moody’s Corporation (MCO US) by Akre Capital 🔹 Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL US) by Wedgewood Partners U.S. Large Cap Growth Strategy 🔹 Palantir Technologies (PLTR US) by Artisan Partners Global Opportunities Fund 🔹 PWR Holdings (PWH AU) by Ganes Capital Focused Value Fund 🔹 Regal Rexnord Corporation (RRX US) by Argent Capital Management Large Cap Strategy 🔹 RELX (REL LN) by WS Lindsell Train UK Equity Fund 🔹 Salesforce (CRM US) by Antipodes Global Fund 🔹 Shopify (SHOP US) by Polen Focus Growth 🔹 Somnigroup International Inc. (SGI US) by The London Company Mid Cap Strategy 🔹 Stifel Financial Corp. (SF US) by Argent Capital Management Dividend Select Strategy 🔹 Suja Life (SUJA US) by Minot Light Capital Appreciation Fund 🔹 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (2330 TT) by Alger.com International Opportunities Fund 🔹 Telephone & Data Systems (TDS US) by Middle Coast Investing Equity Portfolios 🔹 The Southern Company (SO US) by Nexus Investment Management ULC 🔹 Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO US) by Lindsell Train Global Equity Fund 🔹 Verisure by Harris Associates International Small Cap Strategy 🔹 VSE Corp. (VSEC US) by Conestoga Capital Advisors Small Cap, SMid Cap, and Micro Cap Strategies 🔹 Waystar Holding (WAY US) by Diamond Hill Select Fund AAON, Inc. ($AAON US) Fund: Baron Real Estate Income Fund Thesis: AAON, Inc. is an HVAC equipment maker with strong data-center-driven growth, improving margins, and a depressed valuation that could re-rate on better execution. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: We initiated a position in AAON, Inc., following a disappointing second quarter earnings result. AAON designs and manufactures commercial and industrial heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment. After very strong first quarter results, in which the company raised sales growth guidance to 40% to 45% from 18% to 20% previously (at a slightly lower gross margin outlook), on the back of enormous BasX data center growth of over 100%, AAON’s second quarter was more mixed. Management raised full-year growth guidance further, to 55% to 60%, but gross margin missed expectations, declining 230 basis points year-over-year as the company absorbed the costs of scaling capacity so quickly. Though there has been a pattern of extreme volatility in results relative to expectations quarter to quarter, we have spent time with management and are hopeful they will begin to deliver with fewer negative surprises going forward. We see near-term upside given a depressed valuation—near its lowest level in over five years — alongside what we believe is conservative guidance amid excellent top-line growth expectations and margin pressures that should, in part, be addressed through straightforward actions already underway. The price-cost dynamic should improve as price increases already taken flow through, with line of sight to backlog converting at higher margins into 2027. We believe revenue growth will remain robust, and with steadier, improving margin performance, we see attractive near-term upside in the shares—perhaps 40% to 50%—on a reasonable multiple of roughly 15 times cash flow, well below the company’s 5-year average forward multiple of 20 times, applied to 2028 estimates. Access our full research database on AAON, Inc. Altius Minerals ($ALS CN) Fund: Liontrust Sustainable Future Global Growth Fund Thesis: Altius Minerals owns royalties and streaming interests that provide leveraged exposure to mining and renewable-energy assets without direct operating risk. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: Altius Minerals (Enabling the energy transition) owns a diversified portfolio of royalties and streaming interests across mining and renewable-energy projects. Its royalty model allows it to benefit from the increasing value of these assets without taking on the costs and operational risks of running them directly. Rather than operating mines or energy projects directly, it earns royalties and streaming income from the production of the underlying assets. A significant proportion of its royalty income comes from copper, lithium and renewable electricity, alongside exposure to nickel, cobalt, potash and iron ore. providing exposure to materials and renewable- energy infrastructure that support the transition to a lower-carbon economy. Access our full research database on Altius Minerals Amrize Ltd. ($AMRZ SW) Fund: Artisan Partners International Value Strategy Thesis: Amrize is a North American building materials company whose value depends on realizing a significant opportunity under experienced CEO Jan Jenisch despite recent turnover. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: Amrize, also domiciled in Switzerland, operates mainly in North America, manufacturing cement, aggregates and roofing products. It was spun off from Holcim, a stock we owned for many years. Amrize’s CEO, Jan Jenisch, previously ran Holcim, where he created an extraordinary amount of value. After the split, he concluded that the opportunity in North America was significant and decided to lead Amrize. That opportunity has proved harder to realize than expected, and the company has recently seen significant management turnover. The share price declined by 30% during the quarter. Potentially contributing to the decline -- reports of unusually high turnover of senior management. Based on our own experience and interviews with former employees, Jan is a hard-driving, optimistic leader who does not tolerate a lack of enthusiasm for value creation, however unrealistic the targets. He has also overhauled Amrize’s incentive program to drive performance. Our preliminary conclusion is that high expectations, combined with a significant change in incentives, disrupted the existing culture, and that caused people to leave—both senior and mid-level executives. But we’re not yet convinced that, as the share price decline implies, Jan is a problem. We need to square these near-term issues with Jan’s solid track record at Holcim and Sika, the specialty chemicals company he led with great success prior to joining Holcim. Here, too, we continue to work with our sources, and constructively with the board, to properly handicap Jan’s leadership and to make sure we have an accurate estimate of the business’s earnings power. Access our full research database on Amrize Ltd. 🔓 Unlock the full research database This week’s ideas are a sample. The real edge is the full searchable archive : The Associate ($19/mo) gives you every pitch we’ve indexed — 3,000+ across 300+ funds — searchable by fund, sector or ticker, plus the entire quarterly-letter archive. The weekend of PDF-hunting, already done for you. The Rainmaker ($29/mo) adds Warren AI to ask questions across the whole corpus in plain English. Start your 7-day free trial → Apple ($AAPL US) Fund: Wedgewood Partners U.S. Large Cap Growth Strategy Thesis: Apple is investing heavily in silicon and hardware, and the market underestimates its long-term AI ecosystem differentiation. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: Apple also contributed significantly to the quarter’s performance. The Company grew revenue by 16% and posted even stronger gross margin dollar growth as Apple navigated input pricing pressures well. Adjusted for tariff charges and refunds, the Company grew earnings per share in the high teens. Apple continues to invest heavily in its silicon and hardware ecosystem, spending over $40 billion on research and development (R&D) over the trailing 12 months. That compares with some of the largest chip developers, including Nvidia, Broadcom, Marvell, ARM, and AMD, which collectively spent about the same on hardware R&D during the past 12 months. As we have seen over the past 3 years, hardware systems and silicon are the most important elements of any AI strategy. We think the market underestimates Apple’s long-term ability to differentiate its AI ecosystem through deep software and hardware integration. Access our full research database on Apple Armstrong World Industries, Inc. ($AWI US) Fund: Baron Real Estate Fund Thesis: Armstrong World Industries is a competitively advantaged architectural solutions leader with durable cash flow growth, new leadership, and a discounted valuation. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: During the quarter, we initiated a position in Armstrong World Industries, Inc. following a roughly 25% decline in the share price over the preceding months. Armstrong is a leader in the design and manufacture of innovative interior and exterior architectural solutions, including ceilings, specialty walls, and exterior metal applications—serving a diverse array of commercial construction end markets across the U.S. We are excited about the company’s prospects for several reasons: 1. High-quality, competitively advantaged business. Armstrong is the dominant player in mineral fiber ceilings, which represent approximately 80% of cash flow. This is a well-structured industry characterized by exclusive distribution, consistent pricing power, and stable repair and remodel demand. Competitive advantages include a large installed base of highly specified products, strong brand loyalty, and a culture of ongoing product innovation. The remaining 20% of cash flow comes from Architectural Specialties—a capital-light, rapidly growing business that delivers highly customized solutions for statement spaces. 2. Consistent double-digit cash flow compounder. Armstrong has compounded cash flow at a more than 10% rate over the past several years—impressively, against a backdrop of lackluster nonresidential construction activity—and expects to sustain that trajectory going forward. Mineral Fiber cash flow typically grows at a high single-digit rate, driven by modest volume growth, mid- single-digit price and mix contributions, and margin expansion through operating leverage. Architectural Specialties typically grows at a mid-teens rate, fueled by 10%-plus organic growth from cross-selling into the Mineral Fiber customer base and accretive tuck-in acquisitions. 3. New leadership. Mark Hersey assumed the role of CEO in April 2026 following the retirement of long-tenured CEO Vic Grizzle. Mark has been with Armstrong since 2011 and is a proven executive with deep institutional knowledge. We believe his leadership may tilt the company toward a more aggressive posture on accretive acquisitions and share repurchases, which could further accelerate growth. We viewed the pullback as a compelling entry point. At the recent share price of $163, Armstrong trades at approximately 11 times cash flow—well below its recent historical range of 13 to 15 times. We conservatively estimate the shares could appreciate 50% to 75% over the next several years as fundamentals reassert themselves and the valuation gap closes. Access our full research database on Armstrong World Industries, Inc. ASML Holding N.V. ($ASML NA) Fund: Royal London AM Global Equity Diversified Fund (IRL) Thesis: ASML has a unique moat as the sole supplier of advanced lithography systems for leading-edge chips, and its de-rating created an entry opportunity. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: We initiated a position in ASML. While our semiconductor positioning has performed well over the past 18 months, being underweight ASML has been a modest headwind. ASML occupies a unique position as the sole supplier of the advanced lithography systems required to manufacture leading-edge chips. Historically, this exceptional competitive position has been reflected in the valuation. However, following the sector sell-off during July and August, ASML de-rated, bringing it much closer to historical norms. We took advantage of this opportunity to establish a position, funding it through reductions in Micron and Applied Materials. We remain overweight in Micron, and currently hold a small active position in ASML, although we expect this position to grow over time. Access our full research database on ASML Holding N.V. ASML Holding NV ($ASML NA) Fund: Brown Advisory Global Leaders Sustainable Fund Thesis: ASML Holding NV benefits from AI infrastructure build-out and its critical role in leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing, with China competition seen as unlikely to hurt long-term free cash flow. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: ASML continues to benefit from the build-out of AI infrastructure and remains a critical enabler of leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing. Recent share-price weakness has reflected broader concerns around AI infrastructure returns and reports of progress in China’s domestic lithography capabilities. While we have reflected this risk in our assumptions, we believe the reported technology remains well behind ASML’s leading-edge offering and is unlikely to have a meaningful impact on long-term free cash flow. Access our full research database on ASML Holding NV ATI Inc ($ATI US) Fund: Brown Advisory Mid-Cap Growth Strategy Thesis: ATI Inc has record backlog, high entry barriers, and capacity-driven earnings growth potential in aerospace and defense specialty metals. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: ATI Inc (ATI) produces specialty alloys and engineered metal parts for jet engines, defense systems, and other applications that must withstand extreme heat and stress. Aerospace and defense demand for these materials has outrun supply, lifting ATI Inc’s backlog to a record and stretching lead times for some premium products past a year and a half, while growing demand from industrial gas turbines for power generation competes for the same scarce capacity. Barriers to entry are high: ATI Inc is the sole qualified supplier in five of seven advanced nickel-alloy categories for next-generation jet engines.1 New melting capacity, contracted price increases, and a shift toward more value-added products should support attractive earnings growth for years to come. We took advantage of a broad pullback in aerospace and defense shares during the quarter to build our position. Access our full research database on ATI Inc Autonation ($AN US) Fund: Alluvium AM Conventum Thesis: Autonation is a US car dealer, and the fund likes its operating leverage, strong cash flow, and potential benefits from industry consolidation. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: Autonation, the US car dealer, fell 15.3%. Its second quarter results generally were consistent with our expectations. Although new car margins remain low, we remain hopeful of these improving over the medium term. With such slim margins, by the virtues of operating leverage even a slight increase will yield a notable earnings. The rapid growth of its finance book was a bit of a surprise. We expect that other participants will view this favourably. With the consequent increase of debt, and introduction of lending risks, we are not so sure. The lower risk growth path is for Autonation to apply some of its strong cash flow to continue judiciously participating in what is expected (and hoped) to be an increasingly consolidating market. Our Autonation investment represents 3.4% of the Fund. Access our full research database on Autonation BE Semiconductor Industries ($BESI NA) Fund: Baillie Gifford Global Alpha Thesis: BE Semiconductor Industries benefits from the rising complexity of chip manufacturing and the growing need for specialist equipment. Source: Read the original letter ↗ Analysis: That is where some of our semiconductor-equipment holdings come in. We have increased positions in DISCO, KOKUSAI, Lasertec and Besi. They operate in different niches, but the investment logic is similar: as chips become more complex and increasingly three-dimensional, the manufacturing processes required to produce them become more demanding, increasing the value of the specialist equipment these companies provide. Access our full research database on BE Semiconductor Industries
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