Image courtesy of 123rf.com

In a surprising move that has sent ripples through the stock market, two of the world’s most renowned investors have placed significant bets on major consumer brands.

Billionaire William Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management has taken a stake in Nike (NYSE: NKE), while Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B) has invested in Ulta Beauty (Nasdaq: ULTA). These strategic moves, revealed in recent regulatory filings, have sparked investor interest and led to notable gains for both companies’ stocks.

Ackman’s Pershing Square Takes Stake in Nike

Pershing Square Capital Management, led by billionaire investor William Ackman, has disclosed a new stake in Nike, marking one of its first major investments since acquiring shares in Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) earlier this year.

The regulatory filing on August 14, 2023, revealed that Pershing Square owned approximately 3 million shares of Nike as of June 30, 2023, representing roughly 0.19% ownership of the company.

While Ackman’s specific reasons for investing in Nike remain undisclosed, the sportswear giant’s stock has fallen 26% since January, potentially signaling an undervalued opportunity. Notably, Ackman previously invested in Nike in late 2017, netting a $100 million profit.

The news of Pershing Square’s investment has already had a positive impact on Nike’s stock, which rose 4% in after-market trading following the announcement.

In a separate development, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has revealed a new stake in Ulta Beauty. The investment, disclosed in Berkshire’s latest 13-F filing, shows a position worth $266.3 million as of the end of the second quarter. This move by Buffett, widely regarded as one of the world’s most successful investors, has the potential to boost investor confidence in Ulta Beauty and increase scrutiny of the company’s business performance.

NKE and ULTA Gain on Investor Confidence

The market has reacted positively to these high-profile investments. As of 10:24 AM EDT on August 15, 2024, Nike’s stock was trading at $81.68, up 4.03% for the day, with a market capitalization of $122.438 billion. Despite the recent gains, Nike’s stock still shows a year-to-date return of -24.22% and a one-year return of -23.05%.

Ulta Beauty’s stock has seen an even more dramatic increase, trading at $363.20, up 10.38% following the news of Buffett’s investment. The company’s market capitalization stands at $17.331 billion, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84.

While Ulta’s stock has also experienced negative returns year-to-date (-25.88%) and over the past year (-20.80%), analysts maintain an average price target of $464.77 for the company.

More By This Author: