Apollo Global Management (APO) Slid on Uncertainty and Volatility

Baron Funds, an investment management company, released its “Baron FinTech Fund” first quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. U.S. equities closed 5% lower in Q1, following a sharp decline in March. Markets started well with the S&P 500 Index reaching new highs. However, concerns about tariffs, inflation, and softer economic growth, along with concerns about AI secular growth, contributed to risk-off conditions. In the first quarter, the fund fell 1.31% (Institutional Shares) compared to a -7.52% return for the FactSet Global FinTech Index (Benchmark) and a -4.27% decline for the S&P 500 index. Since its inception, the fund has appreciated at an annualized rate of 11.27%, compared to a 2.22% return for the Benchmark. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2025.

In its first-quarter 2025 investor letter, Baron FinTech Fund highlighted stocks such as Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO). Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) is a private equity firm that specializes in investments in credit, private equity and real estate markets. The one-month return of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) was -1.90%, and its shares gained 13.29% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On May 23, 2025, Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) stock closed at $130.87 per share with a market capitalization of $74.79 billion.

Baron FinTech Fund stated the following regarding Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) in its Q1 2025 investor letter:

"Shares of alternative asset manager Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) detracted in the first quarter, largely stemming from a reversal in sentiment on the economy and capital markets activity. As mentioned above, alternative asset manager stocks performed well last year, especially after the November elections, on expectations of a recovery in capital markets activity fueled by deregulation and economic growth. Those expectations waned in the first quarter due to uncertainty and volatility around the Trump administration’s policy initiatives. As sentiment faded, alternative asset manager stocks gave back their post-election gains. We continue to own the stock due to Apollo’s differentiated focus on credit and strong management team."

Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 85 hedge fund portfolios held Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) at the end of the first quarter which was 90 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the undervalued AI stock set for massive gains.

In another article, we covered Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) and shared the list of large-cap stocks from which insiders and short sellers are pulling their investments. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.