Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has revealed a much larger portfolio of U.S. public-equity investments in its new 13F filing, giving investors a closer look at some of the most important firms targeted by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund.
The most recent filing shows that the U.S. portfolio of PIF has grown dramatically since the previous quarter and SpaceX is now the dominant player. The company reports US public equity holdings totaling about $37.9 billion, up from about $12 billion reported in the previous quarter.
The most striking development is PIF's reported position in SpaceX, valued at about $26.3 billion at the end of the reporting period. The position accounts for a lot of the disclosed portfolio and is a big new addition to the fund's U.S. investment portfolio.
And SpaceX’s presence changes the overall character of PIF’s reported portfolio. While the fund has traditionally had access to companies from technology, transportation, entertainment and electric vehicles, the huge SpaceX position means the new filing is more focused on high-growth technology and aerospace.
Besides SpaceX, the filing also identifies a number of other major U.S. listed companies.
Uber Technologies remains one of PIF’s biggest reported holdings, and the firm is worth about $5.3 billion. The Saudi fund has been involved with Uber for years and Uber is a big part of the ride-hailing and mobility company’s international investment strategy.
One other big holding is Electronic Arts, the video game publisher behind popular gaming franchises. PIF’s reported stake in EA stock is around $5.1 billion and is one of the fund’s largest U.S. investments.
Also in the portfolio is electric vehicle maker Lucid Group, which has a reported position worth about $1.2 billion. Lucid is closely linked to Saudi Arabia through PIF’s investments in the company and the company’s larger operations and manufacturing ambitions in the kingdom. The EV maker is still very much at the heart of Saudi Arabia’s bid to develop other industries beyond oil.
The fifth disclosed position is Claritev at a value of $43.7 million. While smaller than other holdings, it is a good example of PIF’s diversified approach to U.S. markets.
The filing is significant because Form 13F disclosures provide a periodic snapshot of institutional investment positions. They do not necessarily provide a complete picture of an investment manager’s global portfolio, and may exclude asset classes and positions that do not fall within 13F reporting requirements.
But the new disclosure is also useful for understanding PIF's exposure to American businesses.
The jump from about $12 billion to nearly $38 billion is particularly interesting. Some of that jump is due to the newly disclosed SpaceX position so the change should not necessarily be viewed as PIF investing around $26 billion in traditional U.S. stocks at one quarter.
It also shows the increasing international investment ambitions of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. PIF is the bedrock of the kingdom’s economic diversification strategy with investments in technology, entertainment, sports, transportation, artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and other emerging industries.
The U.S. investments also show an appetite for companies with high growth and strategic importance. Uber represents mobility and technology, Electronic Arts brings global exposure to gaming, Lucid is related to the electric-vehicle business, SpaceX is connected to aerospace and space technology.
The latest 13F disclosure will therefore attract a lot of attention from investors tracking sovereign wealth funds and global institutional capital flows. PIF’s investment decisions are closely watched because the size of its assets and its role in Saudi Arabia’s long-term economic transformation are of great interest.
Since SpaceX accounts for the bulk of the disclosed U.S. portfolio, this filing represents a very strong change in PIF’s public-equity exposure. Investors will follow up in the next filings to see if the fund keeps these positions, expands or converts capital into other sectors and companies.
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