ClearBridge Investments, an investment management company, released its “ClearBridge Large Cap Value Strategy” third quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The third quarter experienced significant gains for U.S. equities, which recovered from a fear of slowing economic growth that had driven several asset markets into correction territory. A broad rebound was then induced by a 50 basis point interest rate drop by the Federal Reserve. The Russell 1000 Value Index generated a gain of 9.43% for the quarter. Against this backdrop, the ClearBridge Large Cap Value Strategy underperformed the benchmark Russell 1000 Value Index during the quarter. In addition, you can check the fund's top 5 holdings to determine its best picks for 2024.

ClearBridge Large Cap Value Strategy highlighted stocks like McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK), in the third quarter 2024 investor letter. McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) offers healthcare services through U.S. Pharmaceutical, Prescription Technology Solutions (RxTS), Medical-Surgical Solutions, and International segments. The one-month return of McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) was -2.15%, and its shares gained 9.74% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On October 10, 2024, McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) stock closed at $506.25 per share with a market capitalization of $65.846 billion.

ClearBridge Large Cap Value Strategy stated the following regarding McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:

"In a similar case of post-COVID market normalization, drug distributor McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) lowered profit guidance for its medical-surgical business twice during the period, most likely due to continued post-COVID headwinds as primary care sites are consuming less of its equipment, while its prescription technology solution segment is tied to volumes of certain high-value specialty drugs. We still believe McKesson’s core pharma distribution business is very healthy, however, and it is ramping up its Optum contract in the second half of the year, while its most recent oncology practices acquisition should be accretive over the long term, enabling McKesson to continue delivering low-double-digit earnings growth without much economic sensitivity."

A successful pharmacist in front of shelves of drugs in a community-based oncology pharmacy.

McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 70 hedge fund portfolios held McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) at the end of the second quarter which was 72 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) 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 cheapest AI stock.