Whale Rock Capital Management LLC reveals significant changes in Q3 2022 vs. Q4 2022 investments

Whale Rock Capital Management LLC is one of the top-performing hedge funds known for its tech investments. The firm has just released its 13F filing for Q3 2022 and Q4 2022, and it looks like they have made significant changes to their portfolio. Let's take a closer look at these changes and what they could mean for the future.

Overall Holdings

According to the filing, there were some gains and losses in their top holdings. The firm added a total of 11 new stocks, liquidated six companies, and significantly increased or decreased holdings for other stocks. Overall, the value of the fund's portfolio increased from $5.5 billion in Q3 2022 to $7.2 billion in Q4 2022.

New Holdings

Among the new holdings, the three most significant are Toast Inc. (TOST), Workday Inc. (WDAY), and HubSpot Inc. (HUBS). Toast Inc. is a Boston-based restaurant management platform. The company went public in November 2021 and has since seen its stock price soar, making it a promising investment for Whale Rock.

Meanwhile, the Santa Clara-based software company Workday provides enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources. Its Q4 2022 earnings beat estimates, positively impacting the company's stock price. Whale Rock seems to have seen potential in Workday's cloud applications, securing $254 million in value for the stock.

Lastly, HubSpot is a marketing, sales, and service software provider that is also doing well. The company recently acquired The Hustle, a media and events company. With the acquisition and other moves, HubSpot has beaten revenue expectations by 23% and achieved a 64.6% increase in shares held by Whale Rock.

Significant Holdings Increase

Whale Rock has significantly increased its stakes in multiple companies. The company increased its shares in Juniper Networks Inc. (JNPR) by 7.7%, Oracle Corporation (ORCL) by 45.9%, and NETFLIX INC (NFLX) by 36.2%. Notably, Whale Rock has consolidated its position in Oracle Corporation, identifying enormous potential in the company's cloud solutions and products. As for Netflix, the firm might be confident that streaming services will continue to shape the entertainment world, even with increasing competition like Disney+ and HBO Max.

Decreased Holdings

In Q3 2022, Whale Rock held 5.8 million shares of Pure Storage Inc. (PSTG), but it decreased the count to 4.2 million in Q4 2022, resulting in a 29.8% decrease. Other significant decreases came with ON Semiconductor Corp. (ON) and Datadog Inc. (DDOG) with reductions of 35.1% and 72.4%, respectively.

Final Thoughts

Whale Rock's changes to its holdings demonstrate its flexibility and ability to adapt to market changes. While some stocks have remained stable in its portfolio, others have been sold or trimmed, reflecting the highly volatile and unpredictable nature of the tech industry. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for these companies and the benefits the changes in holdings will bring to Whale Rock Capital Management's clients.