Paul Singer Increased His Holdings in NXP Semiconductor in 3Q17  

Paul Singer, billionaire hedge fund manager and the CEO of Elliott Management, increased his holdings in NXP Semiconductor (NXPI) in 3Q17, according to a recent 13F filing report.

According to a supplier report released in February 2017, NXP Semiconductor is a major supplier for Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone. According to the 13F filing report, NXP Semiconductor represented 11.0% of Elliott Management’s portfolio in 3Q17. It also remained Elliott Management’s largest holding in 3Q17.

In 2Q17, it represented nearly 8.5% of the firm’s portfolio. The firm increased its NXP Semiconductor position by nearly 4 million shares in 3Q17. According to the institutional ownership report, Paul Singer’s Elliott Management was the third largest investor in NXP Semiconductor in 3Q17 with 16.4 million shares. BlackRock (BLK) was the first largest investor in NXP Semiconductor in 3Q17 with 19.2 million shares.

Paul Singer’s large investment in NXP Semiconductor suggests he is optimistic about the company. The increased demand for technology (XLK) could be a great driver for the semiconductor industry. Recently, Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAC) shared its optimistic view on some semiconductor stocks and believes cyclical reflation and secular drivers could drive the earnings of these semiconductor stocks.

NXP Semiconductor has returned nearly 17.5% on a year-to-date basis as of November 20, 2017. The broader market S&P 500 Index (SPY) (SPX-INDEX) returned nearly 15% during the same period.

In the next part of this series, we’ll analyze Paul Singer’s largest holdings in 3Q17.