How Bill Ackman Is Concentrating Pershing Square's Firepower: 45% of $14B Portfolio Bet on Tech Titans

The Investment Thesis Behind the Concentration

Bill Ackman has built Pershing Square Capital into a powerhouse by adhering to a disciplined value investing framework—identifying high-quality businesses trading at reasonable prices and holding them for the long term. Recently, his strategy has crystallized into a bold bet: more than 45% of the hedge fund’s $14 billion portfolio is now concentrated in three technology leaders. What’s particularly notable is that Ackman and his team added to or initiated each of these positions during 2025, even after significant share price appreciation. This aggressive positioning signals Ackman’s conviction that despite recent runups, each stock remains compelling on a risk-reward basis.

The comparison to legendary investors is inevitable, but Ackman’s approach differs subtly. While drawing inspiration from the playbook of value investing titans, he’s carving his own path—one that embraces transformative technology like artificial intelligence (AI) rather than shying away from it. His recent move to acquire control of Howard Hughes Holdings with a $900 million investment, positioning it as a modern portfolio company to generate insurance-backed cash flow, echoes time-tested principles while adapting them to today’s market dynamics.

The Three Pillars: Breaking Down the $14B Bet

Uber Technologies: 21% of Portfolio ($2.8B)

Pershing Square’s largest single position is Uber Technologies, representing approximately 21% of the hedge fund’s equity holdings. By the end of the second quarter, Ackman’s firm held over 30 million shares worth roughly $2.8 billion. The thesis is straightforward: Uber commands 76% of the U.S. rideshare market while operating the country’s second-largest food delivery network. This dual-business model creates a powerful cross-selling dynamic, enabling the company to deepen customer relationships and drive recurring engagement.

The operational metrics validate this thesis. Second-quarter trips surged 18% year-over-year to 3.3 billion, while monthly active platform consumers rose 15%. Revenue climbed 18% to $12.7 billion, with diluted earnings per share jumping 34% to $0.63. Despite this outperformance, the stock commands a modest valuation multiple of 16 times earnings—a bargain for a market-leading business of this caliber. Ackman publicly praised CEO Dara Khosrowshahi’s execution, describing Uber as “one of the best-managed and highest quality businesses in the world.”

Alphabet: 15% of Portfolio ($2B+)

Ackman’s position in Alphabet represents 15% of Pershing Square’s portfolio, comprising 6.3 million Class C shares and 5.4 million Class A shares, worth over $2 billion combined. The hedge fund initiated this stake in 2023 and strategically expanded it in Q2 2025, citing persistent valuation attractiveness. Ackman’s bullish case rests on three pillars: Alphabet’s entrenched search dominance, a sprawling suite of consumer applications, and superior cloud infrastructure.

The artificial intelligence opportunity deserves particular emphasis. Alphabet has signed as many $1 billion cloud deals in the first half of 2025 as it did throughout all of 2024—a striking acceleration that underscores enterprise adoption of its AI capabilities. Google Cloud revenue jumped 32% to $13.6 billion in Q2, implying an annual run rate exceeding $54 billion. Company-wide revenue grew 14% to $96.4 billion, generating diluted EPS of $2.31, up 22%. Trading at 26 times earnings, Alphabet offers attractive valuation for a business generating this level of momentum and competitive moat strength.

Amazon: 9% of Portfolio ($1.3B)

In Q2 2025, Pershing Square initiated a new position in Amazon by acquiring over 5.8 million shares valued at nearly $1.3 billion—representing 9% of the hedge fund’s equity portfolio. Ackman described Amazon as “a company we have long studied and admired,” highlighting its two dominant franchises: Amazon Web Services and retail e-commerce operations. Both businesses benefit from decade-spanning secular growth trends and occupy commanding market positions with substantial room for margin expansion.

Recent results showcase execution excellence. Net sales climbed 13% year-over-year to $167.7 billion in Q2, while EPS surged 33% to $1.68. Management is leveraging AI as a competitive differentiator—Alexa+, its generative voice assistant, is gaining traction among millions of users, while the company has optimized its fleet of over 1 million robots and expanded AWS capabilities for building AI agents. Despite meaningful appreciation since the position was established, Ackman contends “substantial upside remains given its ability to drive a high level of earnings growth for a very long time.” The PEG ratio of 0.58—well below the 1.0 threshold signaling undervaluation—supports this perspective.

The Conviction Play

What unites these three positions is Ackman’s confidence in their resilience and growth trajectories. Each company operates within secular tailwinds, commands significant competitive advantages, and trades at valuations that leave room for value realization. By concentrating 45% of Pershing Square’s portfolio in this trio, Bill Ackman is making a statement: these businesses warrant outsized conviction bets, and their ability to compound shareholder value remains substantial.