Andreas Halvorsen of Viking Global boosted his bet on the biggest bank in the U.S. by more than twofold, according to recent regulatory filings. During the three months ended Dec. 31, the Norwegian-American billionaire’s hedge fund added more than 3.769 million JPMorgan Chase shares, marking an increase of 102% in the position. Viking now holds well north of 7.4 million shares of the bank — a position worth more than $1.7 billion, per the latest 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. That’s up from almost 3.7 million shares in the third quarter of 2024, which amounted to a holding worth more than $779 million in that period. This increase made JPMorgan Chase the fund’s top holding at the end of last year. JPMorgan Chase has been on a tear recently. The bank in January reported fourth-quarter results that beat Wall Street estimates. The bank also said issued better-than-expected net interest income guidance for 2025. The stock has outperformed the broader market, gaining nearly 13% in the past three months and more than 54% over the past 12 months. The S & P 500 gains in those periods sit at almost 4% and more than 22%, respectively. In addition to the JPMorgan increase, Viking Global took new positions in two aviation names, Boeing and American Airlines . The hedge fund built a stake in Boeing worth more than $526 million, having more than 2.9 million shares in the aerospace company. It also bought more than 13.5 million shares of American, worth $236 million. Boeing is coming off a rough year, which began with a door plug of a Boeing 737 Max 9 blowing out during an Alaska Airlines flight . The aerospace company also experienced a halt in most of its aircraft production when Boeing machinists went on a seven-week strike later in the year. Looking ahead, the aviation industry, could continue to face challenges in 2025. American Airlines recently forecast weaker-than-expected earnings for the current quarter. While shares of Boeing have risen almost 8% in the past month, American Airlines shares have slid more than 12%. Over the past year, Boeing has fallen more than 9%, while American Airlines has risen 9%. Viking Global also added new positions in semiconductor firms Taiwan Semiconductor and Qualcomm . Those stocks have both had a positive past 12 months, respectively rising about 61% and nearly 13%.
