David Tepper Versus Warren Buffett: Who Won The Apple Trade?

Billionaire hedge fund manager David Tepper was a guest on CNBC's "Squawk Box" segment Wednesday, and one of the topics of conversation focused on why he was selling Apple Inc. AAPL last year at around the same time fellow billionaire Warren Buffett began accumulating the stock.

Specifically, regulatory filings in May of 2016 showed Buffett owned nearly 10 million shares of Apple while Tepper's Appaloosa Management got rid of its 1.264 million shares.

"He made a better trade than me," Tepper said in reference to Buffett.

Tepper did, however, initiate a new position in November of 2016 but has since trimmed the position.

Why Tepper Has Been Selling

Tepper explained during his CNBC appearance he made the decision to sell Apple's stock was based on the company's outlook in China. Specifically, the fund manager said there was a lot of "rhetoric" and negative sentiment — especially heading into 2017.

Tepper further hinted that as of yet there is no disaster outcome in relations with China, which bodes well for Apple.

Although Tepper didn't acknowledge selling Apple's stock was a mistake, he admitted the fund should have been buying Apple's stock at lower levels but he has no interest in buying the stock at its current level of around $139 per share.

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