Viking Global's Ole Andreas Halvorsen Makes Major Portfolio Shift, Exits AI Giants for Microsoft

When institutional investors with significant assets under management file their quarterly holdings reports with the SEC, their decisions often signal broader market trends that individual investors might miss. Viking Global Investors’ recent Form 13F filing revealed a striking strategic move by the fund’s billionaire chief, Ole Andreas Halvorsen. During the third quarter ending September 30, 2025, Halvorsen’s approximately $39 billion fund completely liquidated its positions in two of Wall Street’s most prominent technology companies—Nvidia and Amazon—while simultaneously building a substantial new stake in Microsoft.

The moves by Ole and his investment team offer valuable lessons about how elite fund managers assess technology valuations, identify emerging risks, and reposition their portfolios in response to shifting market dynamics.

The Billionaire Fund Manager’s Strategic Exit from Nvidia and Amazon

Halvorsen’s decision to completely unwind his fund’s Nvidia and Amazon holdings represents a significant departure from many of his peers. The fund eliminated all 3,681,935 shares of Nvidia (which had ranked as the 26th-largest holding by market value) and liquidated its entire Amazon position of 3,897,092 shares (previously the fund’s eighth-largest holding).

On the surface, profit-taking explains part of this strategy. Halvorsen’s investment approach is notably tactical—the average holding period across Viking Global’s portfolio stands at less than 19 months, indicating the fund regularly capitalizes on gains when opportunities arise. Both Nvidia and Amazon had delivered substantial returns to investors who held them through the AI boom.

However, Ole’s exit appears motivated by deeper concerns beyond simple profit realization. The first consideration involves skepticism surrounding the sustainability of the artificial intelligence revolution’s current valuation levels. While most market participants acknowledge AI’s genuine long-term potential, history repeatedly demonstrates that transformative technologies undergo early-stage speculative bubbles. Investors consistently overestimate adoption timelines and optimization rates, leading to eventual price corrections. If such an AI bubble materializes and bursts, graphics processing unit manufacturers like Nvidia would face outsized damage.

The second factor centers on valuation concerns. By early November 2025, Nvidia’s price-to-sales ratio had briefly exceeded 30—a threshold historically associated with speculative bubbles in next-big-thing technology trends. Meanwhile, Amazon’s forward price-to-earnings ratio had climbed to 34, a level that may have exceeded Halvorsen’s comfort zone despite the company’s impressive cash flow characteristics. For a sophisticated fund manager like Ole, these valuation metrics likely represented warning signs rather than opportunities.

Why Ole Pivoted to Microsoft and What That Signals

Rather than retreat entirely from technology exposure, Halvorsen’s fund made a strategic substitution. During the same quarter, Viking Global accumulated 2,429,412 shares of Microsoft, representing an investment of approximately $1.26 billion. This purchase elevated Microsoft to the fund’s fifth-largest holding and accounts for 3.2% of invested assets.

The decision to favor Microsoft over Nvidia and Amazon reflects Ole’s nuanced perspective on the technology sector. Microsoft’s cloud division, Azure, is integrating generative AI and large language models into its service offerings—capabilities that drive client acquisition, subscriber retention, and pricing power expansion. The platform achieved a remarkable 39% constant-currency growth rate in Microsoft’s fiscal first quarter (ended September 30).

Yet what may have attracted Ole’s analytical team extends beyond artificial intelligence. Microsoft’s business model exhibits substantial diversification that distinguishes it from pure-play AI hardware companies. The company’s legacy segments—Windows and Office—continue generating high-margin revenue streams and substantial operating cash flow despite being mature markets. These segments maintain significant market share and provide the financial foundation for reinvestment in emerging areas including AI, cloud computing, and quantum computing initiatives.

From a financial health perspective, Microsoft’s position appears robust. The company exited the first quarter of its 2026 fiscal year with $102 billion in combined cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. More impressively, Microsoft generated $45 billion in net cash from operating activities during just that three-month period. This exceptional cash generation capacity enables the company to execute share buyback programs, distribute dividends, and pursue strategic acquisitions—providing multiple avenues to enhance shareholder returns.

The Valuation Argument Behind Ole’s Portfolio Repositioning

Valuation metrics supported Ole’s Microsoft positioning at the time of the fund’s purchase. Microsoft’s forward price-to-earnings ratio of 25 represented a 16% discount relative to its average forward P/E ratio over the preceding five years. This more attractive valuation provided a meaningful difference compared to the premium pricing commanded by Nvidia and Amazon during the same period.

For Halvorsen’s investment philosophy, which emphasizes identifying undervalued or reasonably priced quality assets, Microsoft’s combination of financial strength, business diversification, and relative valuation restraint presented a compelling opportunity. The shift from speculative AI plays toward a more balanced technology position reflects disciplined portfolio management.

Risk Considerations and Market Implications

It’s important to acknowledge that concentrating exposure in any single company carries inherent risks, even when that company demonstrates Microsoft’s financial credentials and market position. Should AI enthusiasm decline significantly, even software and cloud infrastructure providers could experience downward valuation pressure alongside hardware manufacturers. Additionally, competitive pressures within cloud computing markets could compress Microsoft’s margins over time.

Nevertheless, Ole’s strategic pivot suggests that sophisticated fund managers are rotating positions to balance AI exposure with financial stability and valuation prudence. For investors tracking Viking Global’s moves, the fund’s actions signal that even the strongest technology companies warrant scrutiny regarding current valuations and future growth sustainability—a message worth considering regardless of market sentiment.