Aristotle Capital Management, LLC, an investment management company, released its “Core Equity Fund” Q2 2026 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The fund returned 14.69% in the second quarter of 2026, slightly trailing the 15.20% gain of the S&P 500 Index as market performance remained highly concentrated in artificial intelligence (AI)-related companies. The quarter was marked by strong equity market gains, with the S&P 500 reaching new record highs, while the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index advanced 0.67%. Economic conditions remained resilient, with unemployment at 4.2%, inflation easing to 3.5% year-over-year in June from 4.2% in May, and real GDP growth accelerating. The fund noted that AI-driven investment in semiconductors, memory, and data-center infrastructure continued to dominate market returns, creating significant performance dispersion across sectors. During the quarter, the managers increased exposure to areas benefiting from the AI infrastructure buildout and broader computing demand while reducing positions where growth prospects and valuation support appeared less compelling. Looking ahead, the fund remains constructive on equities, citing continued earnings growth, reasonable forward valuations, and long-term opportunities tied to AI, cloud computing, semiconductor demand, and other secular growth trends, although geopolitical tensions, persistent inflation, and the possibility of future Federal Reserve rate hikes remain key risks. In addition, please check the Fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2026.
In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, Aristotle Capital Management’s Core Equity Fund highlighted stocks like Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH). Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) is a precision oncology company that develops blood-based diagnostic tests to help detect, monitor, and guide the treatment of cancer. The one-month return of Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) was 9.26% while its shares traded between $53.40 and $176.58 over the last 52 weeks. On August 14, 2026, Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) stock closed at approximately $157.21 per share, with a market capitalization of about $21.68 billion.
Aristotle Capital Management’s Core Equity Fund stated the following regarding Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:
Guardant Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:GH) contributed to performance in the second quarter following a string of positive developments, as several catalysts played out during the quarter. These developments include U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of an updated version of the Guardant360 liquid biopsy test, American Cancer Society inclusion of the company’s Shield test for colorectal cancer screening and a report of stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings driven by volume growth and coverage expansion.
