Key Takeaways
- • Billionaire hedge fund managers including David Tepper (Appaloosa Management), Seth Klarman (Baupost Group), Bill Ackman (Pershing Square), and Al Gore (Generation Investment Management) have significantly increased Amazon positions during recent quarters, with Amazon becoming the largest or second-largest holding for several funds.
- • Bill Ackman's Pershing Square built an Amazon stake from scratch approximately one year ago and now holds a $2.4 billion position representing the fund's second-largest holding; Sanders Capital doubled its Amazon stake in Q1 2026 to 29.8 million shares worth $6.2 billion, making it the fund's third-largest position.
- • Major institutional investors accumulated 253 million additional Amazon shares over the past 12 months while Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway exited its position, signaling a divergence in mega-cap technology strategy among elite money managers.
- • Amazon's stock has gained only 3.4% year-to-date and 10.1% over the past 12 months despite AWS cloud division posting its "fastest growth in 15 quarters," creating a valuation gap that value-oriented hedge funds view as a significant upside opportunity in the artificial intelligence infrastructure trade.
- • The coordinated accumulation reflects a thesis that Amazon's businesses trade at a discount to intrinsic value relative to peers, with Nvidia up 35%, Intel up 496%, and Micron Technology up 719% over the same 12-month period.
Summary
A group of elite hedge fund managers has quietly assembled substantial positions in Amazon, viewing the $2.5 trillion technology and retail giant as undervalued within the artificial intelligence investment landscape. The coordinated buying by David Tepper's Appaloosa Management, Seth Klarman's Baupost Group, Bill Ackman's Pershing Square, Al Gore's Generation Investment Management, and Sanders Capital represents a high-conviction thesis among institutional investors on a mega-cap name that has lagged broader technology sector performance.
Pershing Square initiated its Amazon position approximately one year ago and has built the stake to $2.4 billion, making it the fund's second-largest holding. Sanders Capital demonstrated particular conviction by doubling its Amazon position in the first quarter of 2026 to 29.8 million shares valued at approximately $6.2 billion, positioning Amazon as its third-largest holding behind Taiwan Semiconductor and Alphabet. For both Klarman and Tepper, Amazon has become their single largest portfolio position, underscoring the depth of their conviction in the thesis.
The investment rationale centers on a perceived disconnect between Amazon's operational performance and share price appreciation. Over the past 12 months, Amazon's stock has appreciated only 10.1% year-to-date gains of 3.4%, substantially trailing semiconductor and infrastructure names critical to AI deployment. Concurrently, Amazon Web Services, the company's cloud division, achieved what CEO Andy Jassy characterized as its "fastest growth in 15 quarters" during the most recent earnings call, driven by accelerating artificial intelligence infrastructure demand. This disconnect—between accelerating business fundamentals in a critical AI infrastructure segment and tepid equity performance—has created what value investors perceive as a significant opportunity for share price appreciation.
The hedge fund accumulation occurred against the backdrop of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reducing its Amazon exposure, with institutional investors collectively purchasing 253 million additional shares over the 12-month period. This represents a fundamental disagreement on valuation between two prominent investment camps, with value-oriented hedge funds viewing Amazon's businesses as worth more than the current share price, particularly given the company's competitive positioning in the artificial intelligence infrastructure build-out.
Pershing Square initiated its Amazon position approximately one year ago and has built the stake to $2.4 billion, making it the fund's second-largest holding. Sanders Capital demonstrated particular conviction by doubling its Amazon position in the first quarter of 2026 to 29.8 million shares valued at approximately $6.2 billion, positioning Amazon as its third-largest holding behind Taiwan Semiconductor and Alphabet. For both Klarman and Tepper, Amazon has become their single largest portfolio position, underscoring the depth of their conviction in the thesis.
The investment rationale centers on a perceived disconnect between Amazon's operational performance and share price appreciation. Over the past 12 months, Amazon's stock has appreciated only 10.1% year-to-date gains of 3.4%, substantially trailing semiconductor and infrastructure names critical to AI deployment. Concurrently, Amazon Web Services, the company's cloud division, achieved what CEO Andy Jassy characterized as its "fastest growth in 15 quarters" during the most recent earnings call, driven by accelerating artificial intelligence infrastructure demand. This disconnect—between accelerating business fundamentals in a critical AI infrastructure segment and tepid equity performance—has created what value investors perceive as a significant opportunity for share price appreciation.
The hedge fund accumulation occurred against the backdrop of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reducing its Amazon exposure, with institutional investors collectively purchasing 253 million additional shares over the 12-month period. This represents a fundamental disagreement on valuation between two prominent investment camps, with value-oriented hedge funds viewing Amazon's businesses as worth more than the current share price, particularly given the company's competitive positioning in the artificial intelligence infrastructure build-out.
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