Bessenet and Walsh's "mentor," Druckenmiller, "precisely" opened positions in financial stock ETFs, S&P Equal Weight ETFs, and Brazil ETFs in Q4

On February 14th, Eastern Time, after the US stock market closed, the 13F filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed that legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller's Duquesne Family Office made significant adjustments in the fourth quarter of 2025.

In Q4, Druckenmiller "precisely" opened positions in the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF), Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP), and Brazil ETF, while completely liquidating his position in Meta and continuing to increase his stake in Alphabet.

This disclosure comes at a time when Druckenmiller's two "disciples"—Scott Bessent and Kevin Warsh—officially entered the core decision-making layer of the U.S. economy. Bessent took office as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury in January this year, while Warsh was just nominated as the Federal Reserve Chairman.

"Precise" Opening of Financial ETF, S&P Equal Weight ETF, and Brazil ETF

The document shows that Druckenmiller initiated a new position in the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) in the fourth quarter, acquiring 5.4956 million shares, with a market value of approximately $301 million at the end of the period. This move made XLF the second-largest holding in his portfolio, accounting for 6.7% of total assets.

At the same time, the Duquesne Family Office also initiated a new position in the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP), holding 1.1739 million shares, with a market value of approximately $225 million, representing 5% of the portfolio.

These two ETF transactions together accounted for over 11% of his investment portfolio. Market analysis indicates that buying XLF is typically seen as a bet on easing financial regulations and a favorable interest rate environment for bank profits; while buying RSP (equal-weight index) instead of SPY (market-cap weighted index) suggests that Druckenmiller anticipates a broader market rally, with funds potentially flowing from overcrowded tech giants to a wider range of industry targets.

Additionally, Druckenmiller also initiated a new position in the iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ), holding 3.5526 million shares, with a market value of approximately $113 million, accounting for 2.51%.

Divergence in Tech Stocks: Liquidating Meta, Increasing Stake in Google and Sea

In terms of tech stocks, Druckenmiller made significant divergent operations in Q4.

In terms of reduction: The Duquesne Family Office sold all of its 76,100 shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter. This liquidation resulted in an approximate 1.38% negative exposure change in the portfolio. Additionally, he also liquidated his position in pharmaceutical stock Verona Pharma (VRNA), selling over 1 million shares.

In terms of increase: Druckenmiller continuously increased his stake in Alphabet (GOOGL). In Q4, he added 282,800 shares, representing a 276.71% increase, bringing his total holdings to 385,000 shares, with a market value of approximately $120 million At the same time, he significantly increased his holdings in Southeast Asian internet giant Sea Ltd (SE), adding 669,900 shares, a growth of 244.32%, with a market value of approximately $120 million at the end of the period.

Additionally, although the pharmaceutical stock Natera Inc (NTRA) remains his largest holding (accounting for 12.8%), he reduced his positions in other pharmaceutical stocks. Among them, Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA) was reduced by 10.719 million shares, a decrease of 64.6%; Insmed (INSM) was reduced by 941,700 shares, a decrease of 38.86%.

As of the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, Druckenmiller's portfolio contained a total of 62 stocks, with the top five holdings being: Natera Inc, Financial Select Sector ETF (XLF), Insmed Inc, Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP), and Teva Pharmaceutical.

Important Indicators of U.S. Policy Trends?

Druckenmiller's operations this quarter have drawn significant attention on Wall Street, primarily due to his special relationship with the new financial officials of the Trump administration.

Treasury Secretary Basant previously worked for Druckenmiller at Soros Fund Management, and the two collaborated in 1992 to plan the shorting of the pound. Federal Reserve Chair nominee Waller has been a partner at the Duquesne Family Office since 2011. According to insiders, Waller maintains very frequent communication with Druckenmiller, sometimes speaking more than ten times a day; Basant also keeps close contact with Druckenmiller.

This "mentor-mentee" relationship has led the market to speculate that "Druckenmiller economics"—which opposes deficits, inflation, and tariffs—may be infiltrating policy-making through Basant and Waller.

Druckenmiller has long warned that the U.S. fiscal deficit is a "debt bomb" and advocates for cuts in welfare spending. In terms of monetary policy, he tends to adopt a hawkish stance and has criticized the Federal Reserve for raising interest rates too slowly during the pandemic. Notably, he is explicitly against tariff policies, which presents a potential conflict with Trump's core trade positions.

Basant previously commented in an interview with the Financial Times: "In the field of global macro trading, Druckenmiller is an independent entity."

With his disciples officially taking office, the changes in this "independent entity's" holdings have become an important indicator for the market to observe the policy direction in Washington