Baillie Gifford Q4 2025 13F Holdings and Activity Report

I. Institutional Overview: The Psychological Portrait of Baillie Gifford’s "Actual Investing"

As of December 31, 2025, the firm’s reported portfolio value stands at a staggering $120.33 billion . This scale places them in the upper echelon of global asset managers, yet their approach remains surprisingly focused. With 265 holdings , the portfolio reflects a balance between deep conviction in established winners and a broad "nursery" of emerging technologies. However, the concentration is telling: the top 10 holdings alone account for approximately 45% of the total portfolio value. This high degree of concentration among the top names indicates a "high conviction" investment style where the firm is willing to let its winners run, often holding positions for a decade or more.

The scale analysis shows a firm that is comfortably managing over $120 billion by behaving more like a venture capital fund than a traditional mutual fund. They are not "closet indexing." Their sector weights—heavily skewed toward Consumer Discretionary and Technology—show a complete disregard for traditional diversification in favor of where they believe the greatest growth "alpha" resides. In summary, Baillie Gifford in Q4 2025 remains a growth-obsessed, long-term visionary that is currently engaged in a sophisticated rotation from the "obvious" winners of the last two years into the "hidden" winners of the next five.

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

II. Sector Allocation Analysis: Macro Signals and Track Selection

The high weight in Consumer Discretionary (28.15%) is particularly noteworthy. It is important to understand that for Baillie Gifford, this sector is not about traditional retail; it is about the "digitization of consumption." This includes e-commerce giants like MELI (MercadoLibre) and AMZN (Amazon) , as well as the "experience economy" represented by companies like NFLX (Netflix) and SPOT (Spotify) (though the latter is often classified in Communication Services, the underlying logic is consumer-centric).

The slight reduction in the Technology sector (26.55%) should be viewed through the lens of the AI lifecycle. In 2023 and 2024, the market was dominated by "picks and shovels" (chips and cloud). By Q4 2025, Baillie Gifford appears to be shifting focus toward how this infrastructure is utilized. The increase in Industrials (6.10%) and Communication Services (18.13%) reflects this. Their additions in RKLB (Rocket Lab) and AXON (Axon Enterprise) show a move toward specialized hardware and software-as-a-service (SaaS) models that solve specific real-world problems, rather than just providing general computing power.

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

III. Top 10 Holdings Deep Dive: Portfolio Cornerstone and Core Logic

Despite a 5.76% reduction in share count, NVIDIA remains Baillie Gifford’s largest position at $8.18 billion . This is a classic "conviction holding" that the firm has owned since Q1 2016. The reduction this quarter is likely a matter of prudent risk management rather than a change in thesis. When a single stock grows to dominate a portfolio due to massive price appreciation, institutional mandates often require "trimming" to prevent over-concentration. The logic remains intact: NVIDIA is the "sovereign" of the AI era. Baillie Gifford views NVDA not just as a chipmaker, but as a platform company that owns the software ecosystem (CUDA) through which all AI must flow. The fact that the weight increased from 6.43% to 6.80% despite the share reduction indicates that NVDA’s price appreciation significantly outperformed the rest of the portfolio during the quarter. This is a "passive weight increase" managed by "active share reduction."

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

IV. Major Buys/Additions: Offensive Direction and Capital Flow

The most aggressive move this quarter was the 1198.7% increase in AXON , an estimated $861 million addition. This is a classic "inflection point" bet. Axon, formerly TASER, has successfully transitioned into a software-first company. Their body cameras are the hardware, but the real value lies in Evidence.com , their cloud-based evidence management system. Baillie Gifford likely sees Axon as a "monopoly-like" provider of essential infrastructure for law enforcement. With the integration of AI to automate police reporting (Draft One), Axon is moving from a hardware vendor to an indispensable AI-SaaS partner. This massive addition suggests the firm believes Axon is entering a "hyper-growth" phase as its software margins begin to dominate the bottom line.

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

V. Major Sells and Exits: Risk Avoidance and Strategy Adjustment

The most dramatic reductions were in the cloud observability and security space. The firm slashed its Datadog position by 65.29% (cashing out over $1 billion ) and Cloudflare by 23% (cashing out nearly $1 billion ). This is a high-conviction "strategic retreat." Baillie Gifford likely believes that as enterprises optimize their cloud spending, the "hyper-growth" phase for these infrastructure tools is maturing. Furthermore, with the rise of AI, there is a risk that "self-healing" systems or integrated AI tools from the hyperscalers (AWS/Azure) could eat into the market share of third-party providers like Datadog. This move suggests a shift from "Cloud Infrastructure" to "AI Applications."

The scale of the "cash-out" from DDOG, NET, and META (collectively over $2.5 billion) directly funded the "offensive" moves into AXON, RKLB, and Alphabet . This is a classic "inventory reallocation." The firm is selling the "expensive, mature tech" to buy the "inflection-point, specialized tech." It is important to note that the firm is not "timing the market" by moving to cash; they are "timing the innovation cycle." They are moving capital from where the "easy money" has been made to where the "next big thing" is brewing.

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

VI. Investment Insights and Risk Warnings

For retail investors, the reference value here is the importance of rebalancing . Even a firm as "long-term" as Baillie Gifford does not just "buy and hold" forever; they "buy and monitor." When a stock’s valuation outpaces its future growth potential (as seen with their DDOG and SHOP trims), they are disciplined enough to take profits and look for the next undervalued disruptor.

The "Long-Only" Blind Spot : 13F filings only disclose long equity positions . They do not show short positions, put/call options, cash holdings, or investments in foreign exchanges (unless they are ADRs). Baillie Gifford’s true risk exposure might be hedged in ways we cannot see. 3. Institutional Specificity : Baillie Gifford has a very high risk tolerance and a 10-year investment horizon . Their decision to hold a volatile stock like RKLB or PDD is based on a capital structure and client base that can withstand 50% drawdowns. Individual investors with shorter timeframes or lower risk budgets should not blindly imitate these moves. 4. Confidential Treatment : Occasionally, large institutions request confidential treatment from the SEC for certain positions to avoid "front-running." What we see may not be the entire US portfolio.

This section shows only part of the complete report. View the app for the full analysis, position-level detail, and quarter-over-quarter tracking.

Sources and limitations

This report uses public U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Form 13F disclosures and structured data maintained by 13F Hub. A 13F filing is a quarter-end snapshot of reportable long positions, is normally published with a delay, and does not disclose every short position, cash balance, bond, derivative, or non-U.S. asset.

Narrative content is prepared from the same-period SEC disclosure and 13F Hub structured data, then checked before publication. This material is for research and education, not personalized investment advice.