Nygren Looks for Growth and Value

Value and growth investing are often looked at as polar opposites. But while discussing some of his holdings with Money Magazine, top fund manager Bill Nygren shows how both value and growth can have a place in an investor’s portfolio.

Nygren “sees plenty of opportunities now,” notes Money’s Laura Lallos. Many of them are in typical big “value” stocks. Some of these may not have great growth prospects, but they have been buying back shares and/or have high dividend yields, and that make them attractive.

But while he likes big, beaten-down typical value plays like Allstate, Nygren also is high on Apple, which most consider a high-flying “growth” stock. “Today the stock is just under $350 but should have $100 a share on the balance sheet by the end of next year,” he explains. “So it is still selling at a lower P/E ratio than the average company if you subtract the cash from the share price. To not like Apple’s stock today, you have to believe it has worse-than-average prospects for growth.” Nygren, much like the great Warren Buffett, seems to believe that growth is a component of value, rather than an opposing idea.