Activist Hedge Fund ValueAct Boosts Meta Stake With $121M Bet, But CEO Morfit Supports Mark Zuckerberg's AI Vision: Here's What Investors Should Know (Updated)

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with a confirmation from ValueAct Holdings.

ValueAct Holdings, L.P. reported holdings worth $3.9 billion in the September quarter after it disclosed major changes in its 13F filing for the third quarter of current fiscal.

What Happened: One of the major changes in its holdings during Q3 was the addition of 211,500 shares of Meta Platforms Inc. META for $121.07 million, representing 3.08% of its total portfolio.

ValueAct Holdings is a hedge fund popularly known for its activist strategies, run by chief executive officer, Mason Morfit. An activist hedge fund usually follows an event-driven strategy and acquires sufficient equity to influence a company's policies, to increase company value. ValueAct has a long history of investing in technology companies and is generally considered to be more constructivist and collaborative than other activist funds.

A ValueAct spokesperson confirmed to Benzinga that the firm has built a $1 billion stake in Meta.

In 2022, Brad Gerstner‘s Altimeter Capital targeted Meta, urging the company to reduce its workforce. Gerstner articulated his concerns in a letter titled “Time to Get Fit.

ValueAct fund's specific intentions remain unclear, but CEO Morfit is reportedly supportive of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s strategic focus on advancing artificial intelligence initiatives, according to CNBC.

Why It Matters: According to its Q3 13F filing, ValueAct has acquired a passive stake in the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, namely, Meta. It is one of the largest companies to be targeted by an activist investor, with a market cap of nearly $1.5 trillion. The hedge fund also increased its investment in The Walt Disney Co DIS by adding 1.33 million shares taking its total value to $718.04 million in ValueAct’s portfolio.

Also Read: Chinese Retail Sales Pickup In October: Here’s What’s Happening With Alibaba, JD And Pinduoduo Shares

Other Key Changes To The Portfolio

Apart from adding Meta, ValueAct has made some major changes to its portfolio which consists of ten holdings. The fund has increased its stake in the American video game developer Roblox Corporation RBLX by adding 7.83 million shares in Q3. It now represents 8.81% of ValueAct’s portfolio, having a total value of $448.62 million.

Live Nation Entertainment Inc LYV, Visa Inc V and Liberty Media Corp LLYVK are other new holdings that ValueAct has added to its portfolio.

The hedge fund also reduced 806.96 thousand shares in Expedia Group Inc EXPE and completely exited Spotify Technology SA SPOT, Finserv Inc FI, KKR & Co Inc KKR, New York Times Co NYT and Flutter Entertainment PLC FLUT.