Meridian Funds, managed by ArrowMark Partners, released its “Meridian Hedged Equity Fund” second quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. In the quarter, the fund appreciated 0.92% (net), trailing its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index, which returned 4.28%. Also, the Fund lagged behind its secondary benchmark, the CBOE S&P 500 Buy/Write Index’s 1.49% return. The firm’s approach puts controlling negative risks ahead of pursuing excessive profits. It anticipates that capital preservation in bear markets will eventually play a significant role in the long-term compounding of returns. In addition, you can check the fund’s top 5 holdings to determine its best picks for 2024.
Meridian Hedged Equity Fund highlighted stocks like The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS), in the second quarter 2024 investor letter. The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) is an entertainment company that operates through Entertainment, Sports, and Experiences segments. The one-month return of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) was 2.28%, and its shares gained 16.14% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On September 23, 2024, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) stock closed at $92.97 per share with a market capitalization of $168.609 billion.
Meridian Hedged Equity Fund stated the following regarding The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) operates a diversified entertainment business with theme parks, media networks, and streaming services. We own Disney because we believe its strong brand, valuable IP, and expanding streaming offerings will drive sustainable long-term growth. The company’s stock, however, underperformed in the quarter due to concerns about a slowdown in growth at its theme park division. While park revenue still grew by 10% year-over-year, management’s commentary suggested a moderation in post-pandemic demand and rising costs, leading to a disappointing outlook for park operating income in the second half of the year. This overshadowed the positive news that the company’s streaming segment, driven by strong subscriber growth at Disney+, reached profitability ahead of schedule. We held our position and will continue to monitor the performance of the theme park division.”
An audience of moviegoers inside a theatre, savoring the latest cinematic experience.
The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) is in 31st position on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 92 hedge fund portfolios held The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) at the end of the second quarter which was 92 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) 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 The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) and shared the list of most undervalued blue chip stocks to buy according to analysts. The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) detracted from the performance of Mar Vista Focus strategy during Q2 2024. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 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.