Latest news with #Duquesne
Los Angeles Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
USC transfer Chad Baker-Mazara leans on his Dominican roots as he pushes to succeed
Don't call him a traveler. Chad Baker-Mazara said that his journey through four universities allowed him to land in the place he had been looking for since the beginning of his college basketball adventure. Baker-Mazara, 25, arrived at USC in May. The veteran is hoping to help lead young players in the locker room and on the court after joining his fifth team since 2020. He began his journey with at Duquesne in 2020-21, then moved on to San Diego State for the 2021-22 season in search of a better fit on the roster. He fell behind academically in San Diego and was dismissed from the team when he couldn't catch up on classwork. Baker-Mazara then traveled to the East Coast to play for Northwest Florida State College during the 2022-23 season while getting back on track academically before landing a spot on the Auburn roster during the 2023-25 seasons. It has been a unique journey, but he is confident that he will write the most important chapter of his basketball career with the Trojans during the upcoming season. Born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, he grew up under the influence of his father, who played basketball for the Dominican national team and in several international leagues. From a young age, Baker-Mazara knew he wanted to play basketball. 'My dad was my first coach, my role model. Watching him play left a lasting impression on me,' Baker-Mazara told L.A. Times en Español. Although he tried other sports, including soccer and baseball, basketball was his favorite. His dream of playing at higher levels began to pick up momentum as a teenager when he moved to New Jersey. He played at Colonia High School and later at SPIRE Academy, where he began to gain national recognition. His college career has been anything but linear. He started at Duquesne, where as a freshman he averaged 9.5 points per game and had some outstanding performances. Then came his stint at San Diego State, where he was Sixth Man of the Year in the Mountain West Conference. He then dropped down to the junior college level with Northwest Florida State College and was instrumental in the team winning the NJCAA national championship. There, he exploded offensively, averaging over 15 points per game and shooting 46.9% from the three-point line. His performance opened the door to Auburn. In two seasons with the Tigers, he established himself as a starter and key player. He contributed defense, maturity and efficiency from the perimeter. In his second year, he averaged 12.3 points, 3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game, helping Auburn reach the Final Four. During the semifinals against Michigan State, a hand injury temporarily halted hims plans to jump to the professional level. 'I was going to declare for the draft this year, but with the injury, I wouldn't be able to show my best,' he said. Baker-Mazara, a versatile 6-foot-7 athlete who can play guard and forward, decided to recover completely and give college basketball one last shot. After Auburn reportedly offered Baker-Mazara's teammate nearly twice as much as his name, image and likeness deal, he entered the transfer portal. USC coach Eric Musselman landed a player widely regarded as the biggest loss from an SEC roster during the offseason. 'He's a proven winner and will be a player that we can play all over the floor,' Musselman said shortly after Baker-Mazara signed with USC. '... Chad plays with incredible passion and emotion that can lift a home crowd.' Baker-Mazara considers his arrival at USC the symbolic end of a cycle. 'When I was younger, I came to visit the university with my aunt, who graduated from here,' he said. 'I saw Nikola Vucevic walking around campus and said to myself, 'I want to play here someday.'' Now that dream is a reality. He is being mentored by Musselman, who previously was an NBA head coach. Baker-Mazara is pursuing a degree in interdisciplinary studies with minors in sports coaching, Spanish and sociology. 'He pushes us to be united on and off the court,' Baker-Mazara said of Musselman. 'He wants there to be a real connection between us as a group. And you can tell that the guys want to compete and win together.' Baker-Mazara is working to thrive in the spotlight, not only for himself and his family but for others who might be inspired by his journey. He is proud to be a high-profile Dominican player at an American college, a space with limited Latino representation. 'Every year there are more Latinos knocking on doors,' he said. 'The important thing is that when you get there, you're not just representing your country, but the entire Latino community. I want people to understand that I'm not the same on and off the court. Out there, on the court, we are rivals. My dream is at stake, and I'm going all out. ... Many may not like my mentality because I believe that if you and I are fighting for that plate of food, I will do everything possible to prevent you from taking that plate. On the court, we are enemies.' With the unrest created by immigration raids in Southern California, Baker-Mazara wants to serve as an example of an immigrant who makes positive contributions. 'When I got here, they made it very difficult for me,' he said of his arrival in the U.S. 'They didn't want to let me play or anything like that. And I, naturally, lowered my head, focused and set my sights on myself, and look where I am now, thank God. So I tell everyone, even if it's more difficult, even if it seems impossible, try. Impossible is just a word, that's if you put it there yourself.' One of the role models Baker-Mazara admires is Hansel Emmanuel, the young Dominican who lost his left arm in an accident at the age of 6 when a wall of concrete blocks collapsed on him. Today, he competes at the highest level of college basketball. 'It was a shock to the whole country when that happened, because Hansel was always a talented kid. That accident caused a lot of noise there. From a young age, you could tell he was different,' said Baker-Mazara, who has known Emmanuel since childhood because their parents were friends. Emmanuel was not selected in the NBA draft, but he signed a two-way contract with the Houston Rockets. 'What I admire most about him is his mindset,' Baker-Mazara said of Emmanuel. 'He never let what might seem like a disadvantage get him down. He pushed forward and kept working. Today he is where he is because he never took no for an answer. And even though I'm older than him, I often look up to him as an example, as someone whose footsteps I want to follow.' Their relationship remains strong even though they don't talk every day. 'He's like a little brother to me,' said Baker-Mazara. 'We live 15 minutes away from each other when we're at home. He knows that with one phone call, he can count on me.' Baker-Mazara also counts Kobe Bryant as a major source of inspiration. 'Kobe died the day before my birthday,' Baker-Mazara said. 'Since that year, I haven't even celebrated that day. It was like losing a family member.' Bryant's No. 24 jersey had a profound impact on Baker-Mazara's life. 'Apart from my dad, Kobe was one of the reasons I took up basketball,' Baker-Mazara said. 'It was one of my dreams for him to come and see me play. It didn't happen, but I feel like he's here in spirit. This is his city. This is Kobe Bryant.' Baker-Mazara tries to emulate the Mamba Mentality in his daily routine, in the way he competes and faces challenges. If he doesn't make it to the NBA, Baker-Mazara plans to seek professional playing opportunities internationally. 'I come from Santo Domingo. I'm not afraid to play in any country,' he said. 'As long as I can feed my family and set an example for my little sister, I'll keep going.' This article first appeared in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller Exited 38 Stocks, Including Palantir, but More Than Quintupled His Stake in This Trillion-Dollar Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock
Key Points Quarterly-filed Form 13Fs offer a way for investors to follow the buying and selling activity of Wall Street's leading asset managers. Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller dumped his entire stake in Palantir during the March-ended quarter -- and profit-taking may only explain part of the story. Meanwhile, Duquesne's chief more than quintupled his fund's stake in another critical company within the artificial intelligence (AI) arena. 10 stocks we like better than Palantir Technologies › Information is the lifeblood of Wall Street. However, trying to analyze earnings reports from hundreds of influential public companies, while also keep a watchful eye on U.S. economic data releases and proposed policy changes from the Donald Trump administration, can be overwhelming and allow something of importance to slip through the cracks. Two months ago, on May 15, institutional investors with at least $100 million in assets under management were required to file Form 13F with Securities and Exchange Commission -- and investors might have missed it. This filing allows investors to see which stocks Wall Street's most-successful money managers purchased and sold during the March-ended quarter. In other words, it's an easy way for investors to spot which stocks, industries, sectors, and trends have the undivided attention of the market's top fund managers. Though Warren Buffett has the largest following among top-tier asset managers, he's not the only billionaire investor with a knack for spotting amazing deals. Investors also closely follow Duquesne Family Office's Stanley Druckenmiller for ideas. Druckenmiller was especially active during the first quarter. He oversaw the complete sale of 38 stocks, including one of the hottest artificial intelligence (AI) companies on the planet, Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR). Meanwhile, one of the few stocks he piled into was a trillion-dollar AI company. Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller cleaned house in the March-ended quarter Though Duquesne Family Office's billionaire chief invests in a broad swath of industries, there was certainly a tech vibe to his selling activity in the first quarter. Arguably the most jaw-dropping of these sales was jettisoning all 41,710 shares of Palantir Technologies. The simple fact that Druckenmiller reduced his fund's number of holdings from 78 to 52 over a three-month period speaks volumes. It strongly implies that Duquesne's leader isn't thrilled with the stock market pushing to one of its priciest valuations in history. Duquesne Family Office has an average hold time of less than nine months for its 52 holdings, which suggests Druckenmiller and his team aren't shy about locking in gains. With regard to AI-data-mining specialist Palantir, its shares have climbed by an almost unfathomable 2,370% since the start of 2023. Most megacap stocks don't tack on $360 billion in market value in such a short time frame. Palantir's parabolic ascent gave Druckenmiller every reason to cash in his chips. But there's probably more behind this selling activity than just a desire lock in gains. In a May 2024 interview with CNBC, Duquesne's head investor summarized the AI movement as being overhyped in the short run but likely under-hyped over the long-term. Since the proliferation of the internet in the mid-1990s, every game-changing investment opportunity has endured an early stage bubble-bursting event. This is a reflection of investors overestimating how quicky a new technology will gain utility and/or widespread adoption. Though AI spending is robust, it's fairly evident that most businesses haven't yet optimized their AI solutions, nor are many generating a positive return on their AI investments. In short, a bubble is likely brewing. The good news for Palantir is that an AI bubble-bursting event wouldn't cripple its cash flow. Its Gotham segment locks in revenue via multiyear contracts with federal governments. Meanwhile, its newer Foundry platform for businesses is subscription-based. Nevertheless, weak investor sentiment in the wake of a bubble-bursting event would almost certainly drag down Palantir stock. The other issue that can't be swept under the rug is Palantir's valuation. Palantir closed out the previous week at a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 127! For context, this is somewhere between three and four times higher than where other megacap companies saw their bubbles burst during the dot-com era. Druckenmiller likely expects a sizable correction in Palantir stock. Duquesne's billionaire investor upped his stake in this trillion-dollar stock by 457% On the other end of the spectrum, Stanley Druckenmiller welcomed 12 new stocks to his fund, as well as added to existing stakes in 14 others during the first quarter. While many of these adds were modest, this wasn't the case with world-leading chip fabrication company Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM), which is commonly known as "TSMC." Druckenmiller has purchased shares of TSMC for three consecutive quarters, beginning in the third quarter of 2024. But in the March-ended quarter, he really began depressing the accelerator. Duquesne's 13F shows 491,265 shares were purchased, representing a 457% increase from the prior three-month period. It would appear that while Druckenmiller believes AI is overhyped in the short run, he's nevertheless found a new favorite artificial intelligence stock. The investing lure for TSMC is the key role it plays in the proliferation of advanced AI graphics processing units (GPUs). Taiwan Semi is in the process of expanding its monthly chip-on-wafer-on-substrate (CoWoS) capacity from 35,000 units in 2024 to an estimated 135,000 units by 2026. CoWoS is a technology necessary for the packaging of high-bandwidth memory in high-compute data centers. While expanding CoWoS capacity almost fourfold in a two-year period is impressive, it still may not be enough to satiate enterprise demand. However, it can only mean good things for TSMC's order backlog and pricing power. During the second quarter, 60% of the company's net sales came from high-performance computing, which is up from 52% in the comparable quarter from 2024. Though it's easy to get really excited about the future of AI and the role this trillion-dollar company will play in facilitating the manufacture of advanced GPUs, it's important not to overlook that Taiwan Semi is a well-diversified machine. For instance, 27% of TSMC's net sales during the June-ended quarter traced back to wireless chips and accessories used in next-generation smartphones. Even though growth in smartphone sales isn't what it used to be, the consistent evolution and upgrade cycles associated with smartphones leads to consistent operating cash flow and modest long-term growth potential. The same can be said about TSMC's automotive and Internet of Things segments, which collectively accounted for 10% of its net sales during the first half of 2025. As new vehicles and household appliances become more technology dependent, chip demand is only going to grow. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is also reasonably valued, when compared to the likes of Palantir. Whereas Palantir is trading at approximately 215 times forward-year earnings, TSMC can be scooped up for roughly 22 times forecast earnings in 2026. While a forward price-to-earnings multiple of 22 is higher than TSMC's historical average, the company's penchant for blowing past Wall Street's expectations suggests its stock may head even higher. Should you buy stock in Palantir Technologies right now? Before you buy stock in Palantir Technologies, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Palantir Technologies wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,628!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,063,471!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,041% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 28, 2025 Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Palantir Technologies and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller Exited 38 Stocks, Including Palantir, but More Than Quintupled His Stake in This Trillion-Dollar Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
USA Today
19-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Akron football tickets, game schedule, viewing options
In 2025, one of the top matchups on the Akron Zips' college football schedule is versus Duquesne on Sept. 20 -- see below to find out more. Want to attend a game this year? Keep scrolling for information on how to buy tickets for every Akron matchup. Check out: US LBM Coaches Poll powered by USA Today sports Buy Akron tickets on StubHub How to buy tickets for Akron's next game Akron tickets & 2025 schedule Buy Akron vs. Wyoming tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Nebraska tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. UAB tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Duquesne tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Toledo tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Central Michigan tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Miami (OH) tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Ball State tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Buffalo tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. UMass tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Kent State tickets on StubHub Buy Akron vs. Bowling Green tickets on StubHub
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What Stanley Druckenmiller's Exit From Palantir Says About His Investment Strategy and Why It Matters
Stanley Druckenmiller is one of the best investors of all time. He recently sold out of his stake in Palantir just a year after he bought it. Valuation may have contributed to the decision to sell. 10 stocks we like better than Palantir Technologies › Stanley Druckenmiller is one of the best investors of all time. From 1981 to 2010, Druckenmiller never had a losing year, achieving an average annual return of 30% with his hedge fund Duquesne Capital Management, a phenomenal track record. These days, Druckenmiller still invests through the Duquesne Family Office, and his moves are closely watched by investors looking for insights into the market from the top money manager. In the first quarter, one trade was particularly intriguing. Druckenmiller sold out of all of his shares of Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR), the high-flying artificial intelligence (AI) software stock that has been the best performer in the S&P 500 this year. Palantir was not a big holding of his, worth around $5 million at the time of the sale, or 41,710 shares. It's not clear why Druckenmiller sold out of Palantir, but we can speculate as to the reasoning. Let's take a look at a couple of possible reasons. Valuation is the most logical reason that Druckenmiller would exit the Palantir stake. The AI stock has stretched what's typically considered a reasonable price to pay for a stock. At this writing, Palantir was trading at a price-to-sales ratio of 111, a valuation typically reserved for a development-stage stock in biotech or another emerging industry. It will be difficult for Palantir to maintain that multiple as any flaws with its results are likely to drive a sell-off in the stock. This isn't the first time that Duquesne sold Palantir. It dumped most of its stake in the third quarter of 2024, selling 728,255 shares worth about $30 million at the time as that sale came before Palantir stock soared in the fourth quarter and into this year. Druckenmiller bought the stock in the first quarter of 2024, but he didn't hold it for long. Concerns about valuation also seem the most likely cause for the sale as he made a similar decision with Nvidia, selling out of the stock in 2024, though he later acknowledged that was a mistake as the stock continued to rise. Explaining the decision to sell Nvidia, Druckenmiller said that the market had come to recognize what he recognized earlier when he bought the stock in 2022. Notably, Duquesne bought nearly 500,000 shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the first quarter, worth around $100 million, showing that the chip manufacturing leader may be his preferred AI play. Like other investors who may be responding to the simmering trade war, Druckenmiller seems to have diversified his portfolio away from the U.S. Five of Duquesne's top nine holdings are based in foreign countries or do most of their business in foreign countries, including Teva Pharmaceuticals, Coupang, Philip Morris International, MercadoLibre, and Taiwan Semiconductor. Out of those five, Druckenmiller added to three of them (Teva, Coupang, and TSMC) in the first quarter, and he sold shares of Philip Morris. He made no changes to MercadoLibre. Of course, there are reasons to own these stocks besides their international exposure, but it's a notable change for Duquesne. A year ago, the portfolio was much more weighted to the U.S. Not only is Palantir an American company, but it also makes most of its money from the U.S. and is seeing faster growth in the U.S. than international markets. Its biggest customer is the U.S. government. CEO Alex Karp has also denigrated Europe for refusing to evolve its approach to AI and embrace Palantir's technology. Based on Druckenmiller's decision to sell out of Palantir just a year after buying the stock and the similar decision to sell Nvidia, we can conclude a few things about his style. First, the Duquesne boss isn't a long-term buy-and-hold investor. He spots opportunities based on valuation and trends and attempts to capitalize on them. Once he has achieved significant gains, he typically sells. Most of the stocks in his portfolio have only been there a year or two. Similarly, he stays active. Of the 90 positions he held at the end of the fourth quarter of 2024, only eight were unchanged, and he sold out of nearly half of his holdings. There's more than one strategy that can work in investing, of course, and Druckenmiller prefers an active trading style in which he's likely to sell positions after a substantial gain. His decision to sell Palantir doesn't necessarily bode poorly for the stock, but investors should be mindful of the valuation. Booking some profits in the high-flying stock doesn't seem like a bad idea given the high price tag. Before you buy stock in Palantir Technologies, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Palantir Technologies wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $699,558!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $976,677!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,060% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 7, 2025 Jeremy Bowman has positions in MercadoLibre, Nvidia, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends MercadoLibre, Nvidia, Palantir Technologies, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. The Motley Fool recommends Coupang and Philip Morris International. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. What Stanley Druckenmiller's Exit From Palantir Says About His Investment Strategy and Why It Matters was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller Sold His Entire Stake in Palantir in Favor of a Smoking-Hot High-Yield Dividend Stock That's Doubled in 15 Months
Quarterly-filed Form 13Fs allow investors to track the buying and selling activity of Wall Street's leading money managers. Stanley Druckenmiller sent nearly 770,000 shares of Palantir Technologies to the chopping block -- and it may have to do with more than just simple profit-taking. Meanwhile, Duquesne's billionaire investor built up a greater than 1.1-million-share position in a company with exceptional pricing power that offers game-changing innovation. 10 stocks we like better than Palantir Technologies › Nothing bears more importance on Wall Street than data. The only problem is the sheer amount of information investors have to digest can be overwhelming and allow something of importance to slip through the cracks. For example, the heart of earnings season marked the filing deadline (May 15) for Form 13F with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This is a required filing no later than 45 calendar days following the end to a quarter by institutional investors with at least $100 million in asset under management (AUM). Its purpose is to provide a concise snapshot for investors of which stocks Wall Street's brightest investment minds purchased and sold in the latest quarter. Keeping close tabs on 13Fs is how investors have been able to ride Warren Buffett's coattails to significant long-term gains. However, Buffett is far from the only billionaire asset manager known for their keen investment insights and outsized returns. Stanley Druckenmiller of Duquesne Family Office is another billionaire who has a knack for picking out winners. Druckenmiller runs a fairly active fund that closed out the March quarter with more than $3 billion in AUM spread across 52 securities (stocks and options contracts). Though Duquesne's billionaire chief has moved in and out of dozens of stocks over the previous year (April 1, 2024 – March 31, 2025), based on 13Fs, Druckenmiller's investment activity in two industry titans stands out. Specifically, he jettisoned his fund's entire stake in high-flying artificial intelligence (AI) stock Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR) and has piled into a high-yield dividend stock that's doubled in value since April 2024. Spanning the previous four 13Fs (a one-year period), Duquesne Family Office has completely exited 55 positions. Debatably, the most eye-popping sale is that of AI data-mining specialist Palantir. Between the end of March 2024 and the close of the first quarter of 2025, billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller sold a 769,965-share stake. Since 2023 began, Palantir stock has rallied by nearly 2,000%. The company's sustained sales growth of 25% to 35%, its highly predictable operating cash flow, and the irreplaceability of its government-focused Gotham platform and enterprise-powered Foundry platform at scale, have made it a stock to own. With the average stock in Druckenmiller's fund held for less than nine months, there's a reasonable chance this selling activity in Palantir represented nothing more than simple profit-taking. After all, megacap and industry-leading companies don't typically increase in value by 2,000% in 30 months. But there may be more to Druckenmiller dumping Palantir stock than meets the eye. For starters, Duquesne's billionaire investor believes artificial intelligence may be overhyped in the short run. While Druckenmiller views AI as a long-term corporate growth driver, he rightly recognizes that every next-big-thing trend for more than three decades has endured a bubble-bursting event early in its expansion. Considering that most businesses aren't yet generating a positive return on their AI investments, nor are they optimizing their AI solutions, we're likely witnessing the early stages of an AI bubble. If history were to repeat and the AI bubble bursts, Palantir stock would almost certainly feel the pain. Though its government contract revenue and subscriptions would help insulate its existing sales, negative investor sentiment would make Palantir stock a target. Another reason Druckenmiller may have sent all of his fund's Palantir shares to the chopping block is its indefensible valuation. While companies with double-digit sales growth and sustainable moats do deserve some form of valuation premium, Palantir has pushed the envelope of reason. It closed out the July 3 trading session at a trailing-12-month price-to-sales ratio of 107, which is roughly triple the level where other megacap companies on the leading edge of next-big-thing tech innovations have previously had their bubbles pop. Lastly, Palantir's earnings quality isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Last year, 40% of its pre-tax income traced back to interest earned on its cash. This makes Palantir's nosebleed valuation all the more egregious. But while billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller was showing shares of Palantir to the door, he was rolling out the red carpet for what's become one of the Wall Street's smoking-hot high-yield dividend stocks. Between April 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025, Duquesne Family Office built up a 1,105,268-share position in tobacco colossus Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM). It's no secret that tobacco stocks have faced numerous growth headwinds for more than a decade. Stringent marketing regulations in developed countries, coupled with campaigns by health agencies to educate consumers about the dangers of long-term tobacco use, have weighed on demand for traditional tobacco products. But in spite of these headwinds, Philip Morris International stock has doubled over the last 15 months. Even with Druckenmiller modestly paring his fund's stake in Philip Morris during the March-ended quarter, it's still Duquesne's fifth-largest holding (approximately 5.7% of invested assets, as of March 31). One of Philip Morris' prime advantages is that it's an international tobacco company that's servicing in the neighborhood of 180 countries. Even if cigarette shipment volume dips in developed countries where marketing is restrictive, there's a good chance demand for tobacco products in faster-growing emerging markets remains strong. In many emerging markets, tobacco is something of a luxury. Don't overlook the additive nature of tobacco products, either. Tobacco contains nicotine, which is an additive substance. Smokers have demonstrated a willingness to absorb price increases that, in many instances, more than offset any shipment volume declines to developed countries. But what's really set Philip Morris International's stock ablaze is the company's smoke-free business. This is the segment that houses its IQOS heated tobacco system, as well as its Zyn nicotine pouches. Total heated tobacco units sold in the March-ended quarter rose nearly 12% year-over-year to 37.1 billion, with IQOS' market share (in applicable countries) climbing. As for Zyn, 223.4 million cans were shipped in the first quarter, representing more than 53% year-over-year growth. We're witnessing the real-time transformation of Philip Morris from a traditional tobacco company to one that features smoke-free solutions -- and it's reaccelerated Philip Morris' growth rate. Druckenmiller may also be attracted to Philip Morris' rock-solid payout. Its base annual dividend of $5.40 per share works out to a 3% yield, which is more than double the average yield of S&P 500 companies. Though Philip Morris International stock is no longer a screaming bargain at 22 times forward-year earnings, it does have a knack for blowing the doors off of Wall Street's consensus profit forecasts. If it can continue to do so, its shares may still have room to run. Before you buy stock in Palantir Technologies, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Palantir Technologies wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $699,558!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $976,677!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,060% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 7, 2025 Sean Williams has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends Philip Morris International. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller Sold His Entire Stake in Palantir in Favor of a Smoking-Hot High-Yield Dividend Stock That's Doubled in 15 Months was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
