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Apple store. PSP Investments trimmed its position in Apple in the second quarter.
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A Canadian pension giant recently made significant changes to its US-traded investments.
Public Sector Pension Investment Board cut positions
An apple
(ticker: AAPL),
Tesla
(TSLA), and
Microsoft
(MSFT), and bought more
Walmart
( WMT ) shares in the second quarter. PSP Investments, as the pension is known, disclosed the share deals form he submitted with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Montreal-based PSP Investments did not respond to a request for comment on the investment changes. It is managed $180 billion in assets.
PSP Investments sold 680,541 Apple shares to end the second quarter with 3.2 million shares of the iPhone maker. Apple shares fell 23% in the first half of the year, compared with a 21% decline last year
S&P 500 Index
.
So far in the third quarter, the stock is up 25%, while the index is up 12%.
Apple’s recent rise means there is greatest weight of all stocks in the S&P 500 since 1980. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (
BRKb
) added to its stake in Apple in the second quarter. Apple’s third fiscal quarter, reported at the end of July, he was strong.
One observer thinks Tesla can dominate the car market similarly, Apple’s iPhone disrupted the mobile phone market by displacing a dominant player. Tesla investors are probably most focused on the company right now a three-for-one stock split. Earlier this month, Tesla appeared ready to make its charging network compatible with vehicles made by other manufacturers. We think this is a smart movewith little risk.
PSP Investments sold 68,242 shares of Tesla to end the second quarter with 127,018 shares. Tesla shares fell 36% in the first half of the year, and so far in the third quarter the stock is up 32%.
The pension sold 476,302 Microsoft shares to reduce its investment in the software giant to 1.8 million shares. Microsoft shares fell 24% in the first half of the year, and so far in the third quarter the stock is up 11%.
In late July, Microsoft said on an earnings call that it had seen continued double-digit growth. Durable strength in cloud operations overshadowed weak earnings for the fiscal fourth quarter, Microsoft’s last. Earlier this month, Microsoft reportedly asked teams across the company to curb spending for some employees by cost cutting on business trips, study abroad and company gatherings.
Walmart cut hundreds of jobs earlier this month. Second quarter earnings reported this month, they were strong, however, and Walmart also raised earnings guidance. Some believe interest rates are rising remain a tailwind for the company though.
PSP Investments bought an additional 146,543 shares of Walmart stock to end the second quarter with 898,368 shares. Walmart shares fell 16% in the first half of the year, and so far in the third quarter the stock is up 13%.
The Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions of corporate executives and board members — so-called insiders — as well as major shareholders, politicians and other prominent figures. Because of their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades to the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.
Email Ed Lin at [email protected] and follow up @BarronsEdLin.