Billionaire Bill Ackman Has 75% of His Hedge Fund's $15 Billion Portfolio Invested in Just 5 Big Stocks

Bill Ackman is among the world's wealthiest people. With a net worth of $9.3 billion, he ranks 311 on the Forbes World Billionaires List of 2025.

He founded Pershing Square Capital Management with an initial investment of $54 million in 2004. Today, the hedge fund has $19 billion in assets under management, making Ackman one of the top billionaire investors in the world.

He chooses what he believes are high-quality businesses with limited downside risk due to their strong cash flow. Though Ackman typically prefers undervalued stocks, he is also an activist investor and often acquires stakes in companies to influence changes that can unlock greater value for shareholders.

This focus on value and shareholder activism pretty much explains why Pershing Square currently owns shares in only 15 large-cap companies from North America. And 75% of the hedge fund's $15 billion stock portfolio is invested in just five companies.

Here are the fund's five biggest holdings as a percentage of the portfolio and Ackman's rationale for investing in each one.

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1. Uber Technologies (19.6%)

Ackman first bought Uber Technologies (NYSE: UBER) in January 2025, accumulating 30.3 million shares in the world's largest ride-sharing company and delivery marketplace (Uber Eats). He likes many aspects of Uber, including the strong network effect of its business model, its top-quality management, strong operational performance, robust cash flow, and its growth goals.

He expects large-scale adoption of autonomous vehicles to be less of a threat and more of an opportunity for Uber to expand in the ride-share market. Uber is also a capital-light, cash-gushing business with a robust share repurchase program, which reflects management's commitment to returning capital to shareholders.

He believes Uber is undervalued given its moat and potential to grow earnings per share by more than 30% annually in the coming years, which should support share price appreciation.

2. Brookfield Corporation (17.7%)

Ackman added Brookfield Corporation (NYSE: BN) to his portfolio in 2024 when he saw value in the stock amid accelerating earnings growth.

Brookfield Corporation owns a 73% stake in Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM). That makes it one of the world's largest alternative asset managers, but it also owns a big annuity and insurance business, called Brookfield Wealth Solutions (BWS), with $135 billion in insurance assets. That aside, it manages over $1 trillion in assets in infrastructure, renewable energy, real estate, and private equity businesses.

Brookfield Corporation has two significant growth drivers: booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and demand for wealth solutions driven by an aging population, which could more than quadruple BWS' asset base to $600 billion. Brookfield stock has handily outperformed the S&P 500 over the decades and could continue to, given its target of 15% compound annual returns for shareholders in the long term.

3. Alphabet (14.4%)

Ackman started buying shares in Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL)(NASDAQ: GOOG) in 2023 and has continued to add to his holdings over the years. The parent company of Google is rapidly integrating AI, including AI-powered responses called AI Overviews in its search engine; improvements on YouTube; and its cloud computing platform, Google Cloud.

In its latest quarter, Alphabet reported $100 billion in revenue for the first time and strong 33% year-over-year growth in net profit. Google Cloud ended the quarter with a backlog of $155 billion.

Alphabet's dominance in the search market with a 90% share and AI rollouts, investments in AI assistant Gemini, and robust growth at Google Cloud are driving business momentum. Yet, Ackman believes the markets aren't giving the stock its due.

4. Howard Hughes Holdings (13.4%)

Ackman has been deeply involved with Howard Hughes Holdings (NYSE: HHH) since its formation in 2010. The company owns, develops, and manages master-planned communities across the U.S.

Ackman has big plans for Hughes Holdings. Earlier this year, Pershing Square acquired an added 15% stake in the company, increasing its ownership to 47%. He returned as the executive chairman while Pershing Square partner Ryan Israel became the chief investment officer at Howard Hughes.

Ackman is now focused on transforming the business into a diversified holding company along the lines of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, starting with the acquisition of a property casualty insurance company. The billionaire hedge fund owner aims to compound the intrinsic value of Howard Hughes stock by unlocking greater value from its real estate assets while building a portfolio of self-funding businesses with high returns on reinvested capital.

5. Restaurant Brands (10.6%)

Ackman loves Restaurant Brands (NYSE: QSR) for its capital-light, royalty-and-fee-based business that works with franchisees in its four iconic brands: Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes, and Firehouse Subs. Its international segment and the Tim Hortons U.S. and Canada business are the largest profit drivers, generating almost 70% of the company's earnings.

To boost earnings further, Restaurant Brands is trying to revive Burger King U.S. by investing millions of dollars through 2028 in restaurant remodeling, new technology and equipment, and advertising, among other things.

Ackman expects these moves to drive Burger King U.S. sales even as the brand's international side grows through localized menus, digital innovations, and promotions. Tim Hortons' expansion in the food and cold beverage segments, meanwhile, should add further value. With Restaurant Brands also strengthening its financials, he sees strong upside potential in the franchise-based stock.

Neha Chamaria has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Berkshire Hathaway, Brookfield, Brookfield Asset Management, Brookfield Corporation, Howard Hughes, and Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends Restaurant Brands International. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.