In This Article:
Ariel Investments, an investment management company, released its “Ariel Focus Fund” third-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Due to the economy’s resilience and forecasters’ expectations of a soft landing, all major U.S. indices enjoyed gains in the third quarter. In the third quarter, the fund returned +10.61%, outperforming the +9.43% return for the Russell 1000 Value Index and the +5.89% return for the S&P 500 Index. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.
Ariel Focus Fund highlighted stocks like Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) in the third quarter 2024 investor letter. Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) manufactures and distributes life science research and clinical diagnostic products. The one-month return of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) was 10.53%, and its shares gained 18.78% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On November 12, 2024, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) stock closed at $364.53 per share with a market capitalization of $10.055 billion.
Ariel Focus Fund stated the following regarding Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
"We initiated a new position in manufacturer and developer of laboratory equipment and biological testing, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO). The company offers a worldwide presence with the United States representing 42% of revenue, Europe 31%, Asia 21% and Other 6%. Its customer base is diversified with hospital labs representing 34% of revenue, reference labs 11%, transfusion labs 10%, academic/government 21%, biopharma 15%, and applied markets 9%. BIO boasts a solid financial profile, rising operating margins, high and recurring revenue streams. We believe Bio-Rad is a classic Ariel company, offering leading innovative products in a growing worldwide marketplace. The company estimates 80% of sales are from products in which Bio-Rad has dominant market share."
A biopharmaceutical research lab with a team of scientists working on immunomodulatory therapies.
Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 29 hedge fund portfolios held Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) at the end of the second quarter which was 42 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) 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.