While John Paulson's name is synonymous with outsized bets on mortgage-backed securities and gold, he also runs a fairly large equity portfolio at Paulson & Co, and it's worth tracking. After looking through his third quarter 13F and comparing it with historical data, here are a few trends we noticed.

Love for Family Dollar. John Paulson's top non-ETF holding is in Family Dollar (NYSE:FDO), which it upped by 50% last quarter. The discount retailer is benefiting from a store redesign initiative in the midst of a recovering economy, and most analysts expect it to benefit from more regionalized product offerings going forward. Margins are trending in a positive direction and earnings growth is healthy—at a reasonable PEG near 1.5—and the dividend yield of 1.5% can be upped considerably. Judging by the fact that Paulson tends to select his equity investments based on a macro perspective, we think he'll be here for a while, unless his viewpoint on retail discount chains changes drastically.

New energy bets. Another area where Paulson doesn't get enough credit is the energy sector. In the third quarter, the billionaire built new positions in Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL) and Oasis Petroleum (NYSE:OAS). Both are growing players in the domestic natural gas industry, and the latter has a particular focus on unconventional oil and gas opportunities. Whiting and Oasis are up by an average of about 55% year-to-date and offer more expansion upside than their larger cap peers, and both trade at forward earnings multiples below 15 times. As with Paulson's other bets, it appears he's chosen to play a general bullishness on domestic energy with Whiting and Oasis, so we don't expect the general sentiment to shift any time soon.

Getting out of Elan, Mead Johnson. A couple interesting moves Paulson made last quarter were closures of his stakes in Mead Johnson (NYSE:MJN) and Elan Corp (NYSE:ELN). Elan is a diversified biotech and medical research company, while Mead Johnson is famous for its pediatric nutrition products, primarily baby food.

Don't forget about FedEx. Lastly, we don't think you should forget about FedEx (NYSE:FDX). This was a new position for Paulson last quarter, who joined fellow billionaires George Soros and Dan Loeb in the stock. If Loeb, in particular, is able to stimulate any activism from FedEx management, expect Paulson and Soros to place more passive capital behind the freight and logistics company. Keep an eye on this trio of hedge fund managers very closely.

Disclosure: none

We have gone through Citadel's most recent 13F compared to the previous one (see a history of Citadel’s stock picks) and here's what we noticed:

Biotech bets. The first thing to know about Citadel and Ken Griffin is that they typically employ a high level of portfolio turnover on a quarterly basis. Still, it's worth tracking the moves they make, and a couple of the biggest new stakes they took last quarter were in Isis Pharma (NASDAQ:ISIS) and Elan Corp (NYSE:ELN). Isis is a small-cap therapeutics company that seeks to develop RNA-based drugs, while Elan is larger, and has its fingers in drugs that treat autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases. Both are absolutely booming year-to-date, with Elan up 75% and Isis up 200%, but judging by Citadel's history of growth-related stock picks, we're not surprised. Both biotech players are fairly valued and analysts expect the growth to continue; if 2014 is a good year for healthcare, Griffin may be well-positioned here.

Non-cyclical consumer goods. In the non-cyclicals, meanwhile, Griffin and Citadel were boosting their stakes in Safeway (NYSE:SWY) and Philip Morris (NYSE:PM). Like most of the hedge fund's other buys, both stocks currently have market sentiment on their side. Safeway is currently in the process of exploring a sale of its U.S. business, with most estimates placing a fair deal value between $40 and $45 a share (it currently trades near $34).

Philip Morris, on the other hand, is a more traditional bet on a tobacco industry that is set to gain from emerging markets in the future. Philip Morris in particular has an enormous potential to expand in Asian countries like China and India, perhaps even more so than most of its closest competitors. With gross margins up by about 1 percentage point since 2009 on the back of a fairly large cost-cutting program, profitability is also healthier than it's been in a decade.

Large-cap growth. Interestingly, Griffin and Citadel were cutting their positions in large-cap growth companies like Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Priceline (NASDAQ:PCLN). The latter has had a better 2013 than Apple and now trades above the $1,000 mark, but valuation concerns persist. Apple, meanwhile, is still a growth company by our standards, and it's somewhat curious Griffin trimmed his stake by 45% here. We'll be watching closely next quarter.

A couple notable sales. Lastly, the billionaire also sold out of Hertz (NYSE:HTZ) and AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) entirely, and both the car rental giant and the auto servicer have been kind to him. The valuation isn't scary at either stock, and long-term growth prospects are still their, but both have outperformed the market of late, so it's possible Griffin decided to cash in his gains while the getting was good, for lack of a better phrase.

Disclosure: none

We have gone through the most recent 13Fs from billionaire Leon Cooperman's Omega Advisors and compared it to previous ones (see a history of the fund’s stock picks), and here are some things we noticed:

Buying up underperforming Freeport McMoRan and SandRidge. Among the earlier things that stands out when analyzing Cooperman's third quarter 13F is his bullishness on a couple underperforming, heavily discussed companies: Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) and SandRidge Energy (NYSE:SD). In Freeport, the billionaire established a $94 million position that sits in his top 30 stock picks overall. SandRidge represents a larger stake, worth about $200 million; it's his seventh largest equity holding now.

A bet on SandRidge indicates that on the whole, Cooperman is bullish on a rebound in natural gas prices, which the company is heavily reliant on. With most analysts forecasting natural gas supplies to still boom in the coming years, increased demand can occur in the longer-term once domestic export facilities are up and running. Over the shorter-term, SandRidge can reward investors if it can capitalize on the Mississippian Lime shale. The company did beat earnings significantly last quarter, so there is momentum here.

Freeport McMoRan, meanwhile, is a clear bet on rebounding metals prices, and asset sales in higher cost mines have improved the company's long-term outlook. Shares of Freeport are up 15% over the past three months and are very cheap at 11 times forward earnings.

Trading out Wells Fargo for more Citigroup. Another interesting move Cooperman and Omega made in the third quarter was the decision to buy shares of Citigroup (NYSE:C) while selling out of Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) completely. While Wells has the obvious advantage in the mortgage segment and its underwriting business is improving, Citigroup has better growth prospects due to its international exposure. Wall Street expects Citi to generate earnings expansion of 20% a year over the next half-decade, while estimates for Wells Fargo clock in around 7%. Additionally, Citi sports a PEG ratio near 0.6, about one-third the value of Wells, so it's clearly cheap.

Cutting communications. Another trend that's evident here is Cooperman's decision to reduce his holdings in two major communications companies, Sprint (NYSE:S) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM). Sprint and Qualcomm were both in the billionaire's top 5 at the end of the second quarter, and with cuts of 60% and 25%, respectively, but it's difficult to know if this is profit-taking, or part of a broader bearishness toward the sector. Both stocks have generated solid gains in 2013, and both are fairly valued. We'll be watching Cooperman here for more updates.

Disclosure: none

Paul Singer usually avoids mega-cap stocks like Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and invests in mid-cap stocks where he can take an active role in the direction of the company. Here are his latest moves:

Fox and friends. At the end of the third quarter, Singer's largest new, non-ETF holding was in Twenty-First Century Fox (NASDAQ:FOX), which is essentially News Corp after it spun off its newspaper and publishing assets. Judging by this filing, it appears Singer has elected to roll with the higher-growth Fox as a major portion of his holdings while maintaining a smaller stake in the spinoff, particularly in News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS)'s class B shares.

Singer's Fox stake is about eight times larger than his position in the new News Corp, and from Wall Street's point of view, Fox has about twice the growth potential as its sister company. Interestingly, Fox is also cheaper than News Corp in terms of most metrics, particularly on a price-to-earnings growth basis; it sports a PEG ratio of 1.1, about half of what News Corp trades at. Sticking with the growth at a reasonable price theme, Singer also established a new position in Riverbed Technology (NASDAQ:RVBD), the small-cap that's up nearly 25% over the past month.

Don't forget about Hess. Also, don't forget about Hess (NYSE:HES). The oil and gas refiner and marketer has been Singer's top stock pick for three consecutive quarters now, after he upped his stake significantly in the beginning of this year. Singer has been very involved in Hess' board structuring this year, and successfully placed three of its candidates onto the company's slate of directors this year.

Elliott and Singer convinced Hess to seat five additional new, independent board members, while also pushing it to split its Chairman and CEO roles into two separate positions. Hess is up more than 50% year-to-date on the back of a strong energy industry, asset sales and cost reductions. We don't think Singer will leave this stock anytime soon.

A couple reductions and a sale. Delphi (NYSE:DLPH) was cut again this quarter, but the major sale apparent in this filing is Singer and Elliott's official closure of their BMC Software (NASDAQ:BMC) stake. The activist had held more than 10% of his equity portfolio in the enterprise software company, which was taken private earlier this year by Bain Capital and Golden Gate Capital. BMC did gain 16% in the first four months of the year before the merger was announced, so Singer appears to have profited fairly handsomely from the stock.

In addition to cutting his stake in auto part company Delphi, the billionaire also lowered his position in NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) by 30%. The IT infrastructure company is still Singer's third largest non-ETF holding, and it appears his latest move may have been a bit of profit-taking. We don't think he's bearish on the holding just yet, as its growth prospects are still intact at a fairly reasonably valuation.

Disclosure: none

Pershing Square, managed by billionaire Bill Ackman, has been mocked quite a bit this year for its short position in Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) but the fund did generate positive returns after fees in the first half of 2013. Furthermore, Ackman's success in activist investments such as Canadian Pacific (NYSE:CP) makes him well worth following for initial ideas. While Pershing generally manages a concentrated portfolio, according to Pershing Square's most recent 13F and our database here's its latest 13F:

J.C. Penney closure. Due to the relative size of Ackman's 13F portfolio ($11 billion) and the concentration at which he prefers to invest (typically around 10 positions), it's understandable that many of his stakes are worth more than 5% of their respective companies. In other words, most of the activists moves are known well before his quarterly 13Fs are filed, and in this case, we knew he sold out of J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) in late August.

Ackman owned roughly 18% of the beleaguered retailer, and with the exit of Ron Johnson, it's clear the hedge fund manager probably isn't too keen on Penney reverting back to its old ways, particularly its coupon strategy. Remember Ackman was the key backer of Johnson and his store-within-a-store strategy, which looks like it will never see the light of day. Shares of J.C. Penney have recovered but are still down 55% year-to-date, making this an investment Ackman wishes he could take back.

Air Products & Chemicals is still a big bet. Air Products & Chemicals (NYSE:APD), meanwhile, is now one of Ackman's largest holdings. He and Pershing Square originally disclosed that they owned a stake in the commodity chemicals large-cap in late July. Ackman is seeking to increase the size of Air Products' board from 12 to 14 members next year while adding his own candidates, and he wants to control the search for a new CEO to replace the retiring John McGlade. Shares have traded rather wildly since Ackman's stake was revealed, but they are up about 30% year-to-date, and are fairly valued at current prices.

Profit-taking at General Growth and Procter & Gamble. Lastly, Ackman was reducing  his bet on General Growth Properties (NYSE:GGP) by 50% after he cut it by 10% in Q2, and he also slashed his Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) stake by three-quarters of its value. The activist has made a boatload on General Growth, a near-fifty bagger over the past five years, and his position in Procter & Gamble had appreciated by 25% over the last twelve months. Judging by the investment prospects of both the mall REIT and the consumer products company, it appears that Ackman's sales here are simply profit-taking at its finest.

Disclosure: none

After making billions in the oilfield, T. Boone Pickens began investing in the public markets (primarily in energy) and issues quarterly 13F filings through his fund BP Capital. Here are some things we noticed in BP Capital's most recent 13F:

Exxon. Almost 90% of Pickens' equity portfolio is invested in the energy sector, and on a quarterly basis, his turnover is fairly high. Still, it's a surprise to see him bullish on a name he was bearish on last year. Pickens sold out of Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) in the second quarter of 2012, and in the third quarter of 2013, he's buying again. The hedge fund billionaire bought $6.4 million worth of the oil and gas giant, and it's now the second largest stock position he owns. Shares are up 7% year-to-date, but they do pay a dividend yield near 3%.

Apache bull no more. Inversely, Pickens and BP Capital sold their entire stake in Apache Corporation (NYSE:APA), which had been their largest stock pick one quarter earlier. Apache is a shale play that has a variety of wells throughout the world, but it has missed the Street's earnings estimates in five consecutive quarters as costs have been higher than they'd like.

Geopolitical risks, particularly in Egypt, are also a risk factor here, but in Pickens' place, it's worth noting that BP isn't exactly growing its capital base by leaps and bounds. In other words, he appears to have found a better place to park his assets in the energy sector, and that's why he sold Apache, rather than for some outright bearish reason. It's worth noting that Pickens also sold out his stake in Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL) last quarter, which is up 50% year-to-date, so profit-taking probably motivated that particular move.

Pioneer is the new top pick. Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD), meanwhile, is Pickens' new top pick, comprising 12.5% of his equity portfolio. The billionaire upped his stake in this U.S. oil and gas E&P by 35% last quarter, and profitability in the Eagle Ford Shale is a major reason why, in our opinion. Expanding liquids production is another reason why many investors are excited about Pioneer, in addition to its Spraberry play within the Permian Basin. Pioneer shares are up over 80% in 2013, and the valuation isn't out of hand just yet because growth prospects remain strong.

Athlon is worth watching. Lastly, we should also mention Athlon Energy (NYSE:ATHL), which is a smaller-cap stock than most of Pickens and BP's other picks. The independent E&P is exciting analysts with its Howard County (Texas) program, particularly as it looks to expand horizontally in the area. Production has generally beaten even the most bullish guidance in 2013, particularly due to heightened vertical well activity and quicker drilling.  Although free cash and debt levels are trending in the wrong direction, production is expected to grow by fourfold over the next three years, and at a PEG ratio near 0.5, investors simply haven't noticed the growth potential here. Pickens owns nearly $5 million in Athlon, and it's his sixth largest equity holding.

Disclosure: none

George Soros’ Soros Fund Management disclosed, in a new 13F form, its equity portfolio as of the end of the third quarter. Mr. Soros’ largest holding is Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), represented by a $419.1 million position, which amasses 12.6 million shares. A $350 million position in Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) is next, followed by Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR), NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) and Adecoagro SA (NYSE:AGRO).

Disclosure: none

Warren Buffett’s latest stock picks are out, and Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC) is still his No. 1. Buffett holds $19.1 billion in the bank, which is followed by a $15.1 billion stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO), and a $12.6 billion stake in International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM). Buffett also holds $11.4 billion in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), and generally speaking, this top 4 is unchanged over the quarter. The major news from this filing is a new stake in Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) worth $3.7 billion, which of course, he dumped in the last quarter of 2011.

Disclosure: none

David Einhorn’s hedge fund Greenlight Capital is one of the “hedgies” who has just filed its 13F, disclosing its equity portfolio at the end of September. Among all the holdings of the fund, the largest represents a $1.1 billion stake in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), which contains a total of some 2.4 million shares. The second-largest is a $613.2 million stake in General Motors Company (NYSE:GM). The fund reported holding over 17 million shares of the company.

In Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRVL), Greenlight currently holds a $509.3 million position, which amasses some 44.3 million shares. The fund also owns some 4.6 million shares of  CIGNA Corporation (NYSE:CI) and 5.6 million shares of Aetna Inc (NYSE:AET). The value of both positions amounts to around $357 million and $355.3 million respectively.

Disclosure: none

Steven Cohen‘s hedge fund SAC Capital disclosed, in two new filings with the SEC, moves into KAR Auction Services Inc (NYSE:KAR), and Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (NYSE:AWI). In KAR Auction, SAC now holds around 7.2 million shares, the position surging from 2.1 million shares reported in SAC’s latest 13F. The stake amasses 5.2% of the company.

The second filing revealed that SAC and Mr. Cohen own some 3.8 million shares of Armstrong World Industries, up from 581,482 shares disclosed in SAC’s 13F filing. The position represents 7% of the company’s common stock.

Disclosure: none

One of the most notorious investors, Carl Icahn, has recently disclosed his equity portfolio at the end of the third quarter of the year. We looked into the filing, and picked out the five largest holdings in terms of value, in which Icahn owns long positions. As usual, Mr. Icahn’s largest holding is his own company Icahn Enterprises LP (NASDAQ:IEP). The position is worth around $8.4 billion. Next comes CVR Energy, Inc.(NYSE:CVI), in which Mr. Icahn revealed holding some 71.2 million shares, worth over $2.7 billion.

The billionaire has been also bullish on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) (we know that, since we tracked all recent Icahn’s moves into the Cupertino-based company). Icahn disclosed owning some 3.9 million shares of Apple, with a reported value of more than $1.8 billion. Right after that comes Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK), represented in Icahn’s latest 13F by a $1.7 billion position, which amasses some 66.5 million shares. And the fifth-largest stake in Icahn’s equity portfolio is Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX). Icahn disclosed holding over 5.5 million shares of the company, worth a total of $1.7 billion.

We know that Netflix has since been cut by Icahn and Apple’s holding is slightly larger, so if all other positions remained the same, Apple would still be at No. 3 here, while Netflix is probably out of the top 5.

Disclosure: none

Clint Carlson of Carlson Capital has also shared his big bets from this fall. In a recent SEC filing, Carlson revealed his biggest bet is Bunge Ltd (NYSE:BG). Carlson has reported ownership of approximately 2.5 million shares valued at $186 million. The fund’s second biggest holding is WellPoint, Inc.(NYSE:WLP), with 1.6 million shares and a reported value of $140 million.

Carlson is also invested in Life Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ:LIFE), Elan Corporation, plc (ADR)(NYSE:ELN) and Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO), rounding out its top five.

Disclosure: none

Driehaus Capital, managed by Richard Driehaus, has recently reported changes to its equity portfolio, via its Q3 13F form. The largest equity position reported to the SEC is in New Oriental Education & Tech Grp (ADR)(NYSE:EDU), with the fund owning 1.7 million shares valued at $44 million. Driehaus is also betting big on Yum! Brands, Inc.(NYSE:YUM), with the position having a reported value of approximately $32 million.

The fund is also confident in the performance of auto stocks, owning 868K shares of General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) with a reported value of $31 million. The top 5 equity holdings of Driehaus is closed by Bank of America Corp( NYSE:BAC), with an investment valued at 27.8 million, and Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB (ADR)(NYSE:FMX), with 240K shares reportedly worth 23 million.

Disclosure: none

Richard Perry and Perry Capital are betting big on a range of companies. The fund’s recent 13F filing revealed that Perry’s top pick among stocks is NRG Energy Inc (NYSE:NRG). The fund owns 19 million shares worth a reported value of $519 million. The second biggest position of Perry’s is FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX), followed by American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG).

The fund is also invested in Lamar Advertising Co( NASDAQ:LAMR), owning 6.3 million Class A shares worth a reported value of $296 million, and Hess Corp.(NYSE:HES), worth slightly less.

Disclosure: none

Stan Druckenmiller is a billionaire, and was the long-time manager of Duquesne Capital. Now, he oversees a family office, but his investing strategy is mostly the same. Here are some things we noticed when comparing Druckenmiller's filing for the end of September with previous filings:

Bullish on high-flying tech. The theme that immediately jumped out to us when parsing through Druckenmiller's latest 13F filing is a clear bullishness toward two tech stocks that have flown high this year: Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN). The latter was a new position for the billionaire, and sits as the fourth largest stake in his equity portfolio. Google, meanwhile, has been in Druckenmiller's top five since the fourth quarter of 2012.

Shares of Google are up 46% year-to-date, and while we're not surprised the fund has maintained its position in the moderately valued company, it's a bit interesting that it established a new stake in Amazon. The e-commerce giant is up nearly 800% over the past half-decade and more recently, shares have mimicked Google's gains quite well. Amazon basically breaks the valuation metrics, yes, but its growth is off the chart; sell-side analysts are predicting 35% annual EPS growth over the next five years. That's rare.

Changes mind about CBS. This may be the most surprising news of the entire filing. After establishing a new stake in CBS Corp (NYSE:CBS) in the second quarter, and after buying a healthy $100 million worth at that, Druckenmiller's family office has cut their stake by 75%. CBS was the second largest holding in their equity portfolio and now it sits at No. 10. CBS' planned REIT conversion still looks like it will be a go, and shares haven't taken a fall-off in the past few months, so it's difficult to know why the billionaire made this move. Earnings have beaten in two consecutive quarters and all other financials don't scare us, so it's quite possible he was happy with the 15% to 20% gain he likely received from the short-term holding.

Energy companies. One sector Druckenmiller and Duquesne have been beating pretty heavy on is energy. Three of the fund's top ten positions are new stakes in Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB), Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) and Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD). Schlumberger and Halliburton are, in particular, a couple of the biggest oilfield service giants out there, and a bullishness here translates into a positive sentiment of the domestic oil and gas industry. Cheniere Energy (NYSEMKT:LNG), which will be part of what is essentially an oligopoly in the natural gas export terminal business, was also a new position for Druckenmiller.

Airline bear. Lastly, the final theme that stands out from this filing is an apparent bearishness toward major airliners. The fund reduced its stake in Delta (NYSE:DAL) by 20% and closed out its entire position in US Airways (NYSE:LCC). Judging by the cut in the so-called 'super-Delta,' we can assume that Druckenmiller isn't just selling US Airways because he was afraid a 'super-US Airways' could never come to fruition. We now know that the DOJ did approve the American-US Airways merger, but from this billionaire's eyes, it appears he didn't want anything to do with the ongoing consolidation in this industry at all.

Disclosure: I am long LCC

Aside from disclosing selling out its position in Revett Minerals Inc ADR (NYSEMKT:RVM), Ranjan Tandon‘s Libra Advisors also disclosed moves into Texas Rare Earth Resources Corp (OTCMKTS:TRER) and Clifton Star Resources (OTCMKTS:CFMSF). In Texas Rare, Libra reported ownership of 890,433 shares, equal to 2.4% of the company. At the end of last year Libra reported holding around 3.6 million shares of the company, but it was not disclosed in the fund’s 13F filings.

In Clifton Star, Libra now holds 930,000 shares, which amasses 2.4% of the company’s outstanding stock. Libra has not included the company in its latest 13F filing, however, also at the end of last year, the fund disclosed ownership of almost 2.5 million shares.

Disclosure: none

Barry Rosenstein of Jana Partners has been looking for investment opportunities abroad. According to the latest SEC filing, the biggest position of the fund is AGRIUM INC. (NYSE:AGU). Jana reported a stake worth $900 million. Rosenstein is also betting big on oil companies with the fund currently owning 6.5 million shares of Oil States International, Inc.(NYSE:OIS) valued at $667 million.

The next big position is another oil company - Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) – at 6.6 million shares worth $616 million. Closing the top 5 holdings of Jana Partners are URS Corp (NYSE:URS) and Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN) with both investments being valued at about $400 million.

Disclosure: none

Indaba Capital Management reported recently, in a new filing with the SEC, that it added JGWPT Holdings Inc (NYSE:JGW) to its equity portfolio. The company went public last week, and Indaba currently holds 1,050,000 shares, representing 10.76% of the company’s class A common stock. Earlier today Mangrove Partners, managed by Nathaniel August disclosed a new position in JGWPT, which amasses 7,69% of the common stock.

Disclosure: nne

Zac Hirzel‘s Hirzel Capital Management recently disclosed adding Aeropostale Inc (NYSE:ARO) to its equity portfolio. The new stake held by Hirzel amasses almost 4.5 million shares, and is passive by nature. The position represents 5.7% of Aeropostale’s outstanding common stock.

Disclosure: none

Passport Capital, managed by John Burbank, has released an update on the status of their equity portfolio. According to their latest 13F filing, Burbank has high hopes for energy stocks with NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) being the fund’s top dog. Passport currently owns 2.8 million shares with a reported value of $226 million. The second biggest holding of the fund is Cytec Industries Inc (NYSE:CYT) with a registered value of $172 million.

Burbank has also been looking for opportunities abroad, as Baidu.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) is the third biggest position, with 968K shares valued at $150 million. This top 5 is closed out by McGraw Hill Financial Inc (NYSE:MHFI) and DIRECTV(NASDAQ:DTV).

Disclosure: none