Billionaire Bill Ackman Sells Alphabet (Google) and Buys a Robotaxi Stock Up 266% Since 2023 (Hint: Not Tesla)

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Billionaire Bill Ackman is a notable figure in the world of hedge funds, recognized for maintaining a selective portfolio of strong belief investments. At present, his company, Pershing Square Capital Management, manages approximately $12 billion across 11 different businesses.

In the first quarter, Ackman took some noteworthy actions regarding his capital allocation. He chose to offload shares of Alphabet (Google) and instead invested in Uber Technologies, a company that has seen a 266% increase in value since January 2023. The specifics of these transactions are as follows:

1. Ackman sold shares of Alphabet (GOOGL & GOOG).
2. He purchased stocks in Uber Technologies (UBER).

  • He sold 772,000 shares of Alphabet, trimming his position 7%. That is surprising because most analysts viewed the stock as undervalued throughout the first quarter, and the same is true today. The median target price of $200 per share implies 9% upside from Alphabet’s current share price of $183.
  • He bought 30.3 million shares of Uber, now his largest holding at 19% of the portfolio. Ackman explained his confidence on social media, praising the leadership of CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and calling Uber “one of the best-managed and highest-quality businesses in the world.”

Here’s what investors should know about Alphabet and Uber.

Alphabet: The stock Bill Ackman sold in the first quarter

The biggest player in the realm of adtech is the alphabet company, with platforms like Google Search and YouTube contributing significantly to this status. In the past year alone, these properties accounted for over a third of global digital advertising expenditure, much like their market share from the preceding year. Yet, analysts predict a potential decrease in market share for the company as competition stiffens in the future.

Amazon has significantly strengthened its position in the digital advertising sector by effectively capturing shoppers’ attention, a trend that is projected to continue as companies invest more in retail advertising. However, advanced AI-driven platforms such as OpenAI and Perplexity pose a threat by potentially diverting ad revenue away from Alphabet.

Google, which is part of Alphabet, ranks third among public cloud providers when it comes to revenue generated from infrastructure and platform services (CIPS). They accounted for 12% of total CIPS spending during the first quarter of 2025, an increase from 11% in the previous year. Given their strong position as a leader in AI infrastructure, advanced language models, and data science platforms, it’s expected that they will potentially grow their share further in upcoming quarters.

Aside from its primary ventures, Alphabet’s Waymo stands out as a pioneer in autonomous driving technology. Currently, it offers commercial ride-sharing services powered by autonomous vehicles in five U.S. cities and intends to expand to at least two more cities next year. Furthermore, Waymo is testing its robotaxi fleet in multiple other U.S. cities. In April, the company announced that it conducts over 250,000 paid rides weekly.

In the future, eMarketer anticipates that digital ad spending will increase by 10% each year until 2028. Similarly, Grand View Research projects a 20% annual growth rate for the cloud computing market until 2030. As such, Alphabet could potentially see steady, low-double-digit sales growth throughout this period, with additional potential for further growth if its self-driving taxi service continues to expand.

Financial analysts predict that Alphabet’s earnings will grow by approximately 14% per year for the next three to five years. Given this projected growth rate, a valuation of 20.5 times current earnings appears reasonable. However, it is essential to note that Alphabet is currently embroiled in two legal disputes, and these potential risks could account for why Ackman reduced his investment stake during the first quarter.

As an ardent follower of tech news, I’m excited to share that the courts have deemed Alphabet’s dominance in internet search and adtech software as potentially illegal. The legal proceedings have now advanced into the phase where remedies are being considered. While a full breakup might not be on the table, the Justice Department is pushing for Alphabet to sell off specific parts of its business.

In August, a federal judge will make a decision regarding the solution for Alphabet’s internet search monopoly. The hearing for the remedies concerning its adtech software will commence in September. This development in tech antitrust law is indeed intriguing!

Uber: The stock Bill Ackman bought in the first quarter

In simpler terms, Uber leads the way in both ride-sharing and food delivery services, especially within the United States where it ranks as the biggest player in ride-sharing and the second-largest in food delivery, based on sales. On a global scale, Uber’s ride-sharing platform takes the top spot in the ten largest markets around the world, while its food delivery service is number one in eight of these prominent markets.

As an observer, I find it logically sound that Uber could serve as a strategic ally for autonomous vehicle (AV) companies. Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s CEO, views robotaxis as a potential $1 trillion market opportunity in the United States. In conversations with analysts, he emphasized that Uber is poised to offer the most economical operational costs for AV partners due to our substantial advancements in every aspect of market deployment capabilities.

Certainly, it’s worth noting that Uber has collaborated with numerous businesses aiming to roll out robotaxi services soon. Notably absent from this list is Tesla, although the following significant partnerships are outlined below:

Uber has partnered with a number of companies preparing to debut robotaxi services. Tesla is not part of this group, but here’s a rundown of other notable collaborations:

  • Alphabet’s Waymo offers robotaxi rides through Uber in Phoenix, Austin, and Atlanta. Also, autonomous food delivery is available through Uber Eats in Phoenix.
  • May Mobility will offer robotaxi rides through Uber in Arlington, Texas, by the end of 2025. The companies will take their partnership to additional U.S. markets in 2026.
  • Pony AI will offer robotaxi rides through Uber in a “key market in the Middle East” this year, with a goal of scaling to additional international markets in the future.
  • Volkswagen will offer robotaxi rides through Uber in Los Angeles. Testing is scheduled to start later this year, and the commercial launch will follow in 2026.
  • WeRide offers robotaxi rides through Uber in Abu Dhabi, with Dubai to follow later this year. The companies will expand the partnership to 15 additional cities in the next five years.

According to Wall Street forecasts, Uber’s profits are expected to grow by approximately 25% each year for the next 3-5 years. Given its current valuation of 15.9 times earnings, it seems undervalued. My advice is for investors to consider emulating Ackman and invest in Uber shares, but I would suggest starting with a modest position first.

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2025-07-19 11:47