The equity portfolio of Fairfax Financial Holdings, the insurance holding company controlled by Prem Watsa has a market value of approximately $1.54 billion based on its 13f filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the quarter ended December 31, 2014.
Prem Watsa’s largest stockholdings
Prem Watsa’s filing showed that BlackBerry remained the largest stockholding of Fairfax Financial. The firm owns 46,654,700 shares of the Canadian technology company. Its stake is worth more than $512 million.
Yesterday, BlackBerry temporarily reduced the price of its limited edition red Passport by $100 to $599 in the United States and $125 to $674 in Canada. The company is offering the discount to consumers until February.
The Canadian technology company strengthened its expertise in mobile enterprise security with appointment of David Kleidermacher as chief security officer this week. The stock price of BlackBerry closed $10.09 per share, up by 2.33% on Friday.
Resolute Forest Products is the second largest stockholding of Prem Watsa’s firm. Fairfax Financial holds 29,044.012 shares in the company. Its stockholding is worth more than $510 million.
The stock price of Resolute Forest Products increased more than 2% to $19.03 on Friday. The company’s stock gained 8% year-to-date.
Prem Watsa’s new stockholdings
During the quarter, Prem Watsa purchased 6,300 shares of Colfax, a global industrial and manufacturing company. His investment in the company is worth $325,000.
The stock price of Colfax surged almost 8% to $52.02 per share on Friday. The company’s director Mutchell Rales disclosed that he bought 500,000 shares at an average price of $46.26 per share on Wednesday, February 11.
Prem Watsa acquired 20,200 shares of Cubist Pharmaceuticals worth approximately $2.03 million. The biopharmaceutical company is focused on the research, development and commercialization of treatments for serious medical conditions of acutely ill patients.
Prem Watsa’s increased positions
During the quarter Prem Watsa bought additional 18,422,988 shares of SandRidge Energy. The company is focused on oil and gas exploration and production in the Mid-Continent region of the United States.
The shares of SandRidge Energy gained more than 7% to $2.09 per share driven by the continued increase of oil prices. The Brent crude oil rose 4.37% to $57.05 per barrel while the WTI crude oil was flat at $52.78 per barrel on Friday.
SandRidge Energy recently announced the resignation of Roy T. Oliver Jr. as member of the board effective February 28. The company appointed J. Mike Stice as board member.
Prem Watsa also purchased additional 295,000 shares of International Business Machines Corporation. His firm now owns 1,363,100 shares worth approximately $218 million. IBM is the third largest stockholding of Fairfax Financial.
Analysts at Zacks Equity Research recently reiterated their Neutral rating for IBM with a $166 price target. The analysts noted IBM’s fourth quarter revenue missed consensus estimates, and it is declining year-over-year. IBM’s earnings beat street estimates.
During the quarter, Prem Watsa bought additional 21,000 shares of Penn West Petroleum to 55,700 shares worth $117,000. He purchased 1,000 shares of Precision Castparts to 2,000 shares worth $482,000. He also acquired 27,300 shares of Rayonier Advanced Materials to 40,000 shares worth $892,000.
