Gotham Asset Management Q4 2025 13F Holdings and Activity Report

I. Institutional Overview

Joel Greenblatt and his firm, Gotham Asset Management, represent a unique intersection of academic rigor and practical quantitative investing. As we dissect the 13F filing for the fourth quarter of 2025, we are looking at a portfolio that has grown into a massive $27.39 billion powerhouse. To understand the psychological portrait of this institution, one must first understand the lineage of its founder. Joel Greenblatt is famously the author of "The Little Book That Beats the Market," where he introduced the "Magic Formula"—a systematic way of buying good companies (high Return on Capital) at cheap prices (high Earnings Yield). However, the Q4 2025 data reveals an institution that has evolved far beyond simple stock picking into a sophisticated, highly diversified quantitative machine.

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II. Sector Allocation Analysis

The heavy weight in Technology (nearly a quarter of the portfolio) is particularly noteworthy. In a traditional value framework, Technology is often avoided due to high P/E ratios. However, Gotham’s "Magic Formula" logic looks at Earnings Yield (EBIT/Enterprise Value). Many mega-cap tech companies, despite high nominal prices, generate such massive cash flows that their yield remains attractive relative to their quality. This allocation signals a belief that the "Quality" factor in Tech remains a dominant driver of returns, even in a potentially high-interest-rate environment.

The 14.21% in Consumer Discretionary further reinforces this "pro-cyclical" stance. This sector includes everything from e-commerce giants to automotive and luxury goods. A high weight here suggests that Gotham’s models see resilience in the American consumer. If the models were predicting a severe recession, we would expect to see a much higher concentration in defensive sectors like Consumer Staples (5.72%) or Utilities (included in Others). Instead, the defensive posture is relatively light, indicating an "offensive" or at least "neutral-to-positive" economic outlook.

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

With a staggering 16.75% weight, the SPY is the undisputed foundation of Gotham's portfolio. This is a "Conviction Beta" position. The fact that Gotham added 19.74% to this position during Q4 2025 is a major macro signal. It suggests that the firm is moving away from pure idiosyncratic stock picking and toward a "Core-Satellite" approach. By holding nearly $4.6 billion in the S&P 500, Gotham ensures that it will not underperform the broad market significantly during a bull run. The addition of over 1.1 million shares indicates a massive inflow of capital into the firm's core strategy, which was then deployed into the most liquid instrument available. This is a move of strategic scaling . It provides the liquidity necessary to manage a $27B fund while maintaining exposure to the "Quality" and "Growth" factors inherent in the modern S&P 500.

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

The 11,589% increase in Airbnb is a classic "New Core" addition. Gotham moved from a negligible "fractional" position to a $106 million stake. From a fundamental perspective, Airbnb fits the Gotham model perfectly: it is a "Capital Light" business with high returns on capital. Unlike traditional hotels, Airbnb doesn't own the real estate; it owns the platform. This allows for massive scalability and high margins. The timing suggests that Gotham’s models saw a "Valuation Trough" or a "Growth Inflection" point. By making ABNB a top 15 holding, Gotham is betting on the continued dominance of the platform economy in the travel sector.

The 283% increase in VTV represents a "Tactical Value Rotation." While Gotham is a value firm, they often use ETFs to capture broad factor moves. Adding over $100 million to VTV suggests that their models are predicting an outperformance of "Value" over "Growth" in the coming quarters. This serves as a hedge against their individual tech holdings like NVDA and AAPL. It is a way to stay diversified while leaning into the firm’s core philosophy of buying "cheap" companies.

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

The complete exit of Hologic ($43M) is the largest single cash-out of the quarter. Hologic, a specialist in women’s health and diagnostics, had been in the portfolio for 5.5 years . With a 18.4% P/L , this exit qualifies as "Mission Accomplished." Gotham likely determined that the "Earnings Yield" for HOLX had compressed to a point where it no longer met the "Magic Formula" threshold. It is a disciplined move—exiting a solid company because the valuation no longer offers a sufficient margin of safety.

When we look at the "Sell" side, we see a clear trend: Exiting "Old Value" (Kellanova, IPG) and "Mature Healthcare" (Hologic) to fund "New Beta" (SPY) and "Platform Growth" (ABNB). This is a "Strategy Refresh." Gotham is moving away from stagnant, low-growth value names and toward companies that offer a better combination of "Quality" and "Forward Yield." The total cash recouped from the top exits and reductions is approximately $150 million . While this is small compared to the $1.2 billion in buys, it represents the "active" part of the portfolio's turnover.

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

Platform Quality over Traditional Value: The aggressive move into Airbnb (ABNB) and Lululemon (LULU) shows that Gotham’s definition of "Value" has shifted. They are no longer just looking for "cheap" companies in dying industries. They are looking for "Capital-Light Compounders" —businesses that can grow without massive capital expenditures. This is the modern iteration of the "Magic Formula." 3. Tactical Liquidity as a Strategic Tool: The significant positions in BIL (T-Bills) and SGOV indicate that Gotham views "Cash" not as a lack of ideas, but as a strategic asset. In an uncertain macro environment, having "Dry Powder" allows the firm to be opportunistic when the quantitative models flash a "Buy" signal. 4. The "Sell A, Buy B" Logic Chain: Gotham is systematically selling "Stagnant Staples" (Kellanova) and "Cyclical Semis" (Micron) to fund "Platform Growth" (Airbnb) and "Broad Value" (VTV). This is a rotation from "Price-based Value" to "Quality-based Value."

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.