If you spend five minutes on the internet, you’ll hear that George Soros owns everything from your local news station to the coffee shop down the street. It’s a wild narrative. People love a good puppet-master story, but the actual math of his portfolio is a bit more grounded in the boring, high-stakes world of institutional finance.
So, what companies does George Soros own exactly?
First off, we have to clear up a massive technicality. George Soros, the man, doesn't usually "own" these companies in the way you own a car. He operates through Soros Fund Management (SFM). For decades, this was a hedge fund, but in 2011, it pivoted into a family office. This means he’s primarily managing his own wealth and the billions he’s funneled into his Open Society Foundations. When we talk about his "ownership," we’re usually looking at 13F filings—quarterly reports mandated by the SEC that show what U.S.-listed stocks a fund holds.
It's a moving target. He buys. He sells. He hedges.
The Heavy Hitters in the Soros Portfolio
Lately, the Soros strategy has looked a lot less like "taking over the world" and a lot more like "betting on the future of tech and healthcare."
One of the most significant holdings in recent cycles has been Alphabet Inc. (Google). He’s been in and out of this one, but it remains a staple. It makes sense. If you want exposure to the backbone of the internet, you buy Alphabet. But he doesn't just stick to the Silicon Valley darlings.
Horizon Therapeutics was a massive play for SFM. This is where the "expert" side of his team shines—finding biotech firms that are ripe for acquisition. When Amgen moved to acquire Horizon, Soros was sitting on a mountain of shares. It’s classic arbitrage. He also has a history with Rivian Automotive. While the EV market has been a total roller coaster, Soros jumped in early with a multi-billion dollar stake, though he’s trimmed that significantly as the market cooled.
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He’s also got his hands in AerCap Holdings. They are the world's largest aviation leasing company. Think about that. Every time you fly, there’s a decent chance the plane is owned by AerCap and leased to the airline. It’s a "toll booth" business—steady, essential, and complicated.
It's Not Just Stocks: The Real Estate and Media Buzz
People get really fired up about Soros and the media. You’ve probably heard he "owns" the news.
The reality? It’s more about debt and restructuring. Recently, Soros Fund Management became a major stakeholder in Audacy, the second-largest radio broadcaster in the U.S., after it went through bankruptcy. By buying up the debt, he effectively traded that debt for equity. This gives him a seat at the table in a company that owns hundreds of radio stations.
Is he micro-managing the playlist on a Top 40 station in Des Moines? Unlikely. Is he interested in the platform's reach? Almost certainly.
Then there’s Vice Media. After Vice crashed and burned into bankruptcy, a consortium of lenders including Soros Fund Management and Fortress Investment Group bought it. Again, this wasn't a "hostile takeover" of a thriving brand; it was a rescue mission for a failing asset. He owns a piece of the wreckage, hoping to turn it into something profitable.
The Fintech and AI Pivot
Soros is old, but his money is young.
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The fund has been eyeing the fintech space for a while. They’ve held positions in PayPal and Block (formerly Square). He also dipped into the AI hype before it was the only thing anyone talked about. He held shares in Nvidia—who didn't?—but the fund is notorious for taking profits early. They aren't "diamond hands" Reddit traders. If a stock hits a target, they exit.
Why the Portfolio Changes So Fast
- Risk Mitigation: They use derivatives and options to protect against market crashes.
- Macro Shifts: If Soros thinks the Euro is going to tank or the Yen is going to rise, the entire equity portfolio might be shifted to balance that risk.
- Philanthropy: A huge chunk of the profits goes directly to the Open Society Foundations. They need liquid cash to fund grants worldwide.
Sometimes he buys things that seem totally random. D.R. Horton, the homebuilder? He’s owned it. Booking Holdings (Priceline/OpenTable)? He’s been there too. It’s a diversified "all-weather" approach.
Misconceptions About Direct Control
Here is the thing about being a billionaire: you hire people to be smarter than you. Dawn Fitzpatrick, the CEO and CIO of Soros Fund Management, is the one actually steering the ship. While George's "reflexivity theory"—the idea that investor biases actually change market fundamentals—is the DNA of the firm, he isn't sitting at a Bloomberg terminal at 3:00 AM trading Apple stocks.
He’s a macro investor. He looks at the big picture.
When people ask "what companies does George Soros own," they often imply he has a secret lair where he directs the CEOs of these companies. In reality, most of his holdings are minority stakes. If he owns 1% of a tech giant, he has zero say in their daily operations. He’s just a guy with a very big brokerage account.
The Energy Plays
Surprisingly, for a man who funds a lot of environmental causes, his fund doesn't shy away from "old energy."
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They have held stakes in companies like First Solar, but they’ve also moved money through oil and gas service providers. It’s about the "energy transition" rather than a total boycott of fossil fuels. He plays the reality of the market, not just the idealism of his foundations.
Real Assets and Farmland
Beyond the stock market, Soros has been linked to massive land holdings. In the early 2000s, he was a huge player in Adecoagro, a massive farming business in South America. They produce grain, sugar, and ethanol. This is the "hard asset" part of his wealth. When the dollar is shaky, owning thousands of acres of productive soil in Argentina or Brazil is a genius move.
How to Track His Moves
If you really want to know what he’s up to, you have to look at the Form 13F.
Every three months, institutional investment managers with at least $100 million in assets under management must disclose their holdings. But remember:
- It's delayed. By the time you read a 13F, the data is at least 45 days old.
- It only covers U.S. stocks. It doesn't show his short positions, his gold, his cash, or his international holdings in London or Hong Kong.
- It’s a snapshot. He could have sold the entire position the day after the filing.
Actionable Insights for Investors
Watching what companies George Soros owns isn't just for conspiracy theorists. It's a masterclass in capital preservation.
If you want to follow the "Soros Style," don't just copy his picks—look at his themes. He looks for distressed assets (like Audacy or Vice) where he can buy in cheap through debt. He looks for technological shifts (like Rivian or Alphabet) where the upside is massive. And most importantly, he isn't afraid to be wrong. He cuts losses fast.
To stay updated on these moves:
- Monitor WhaleWisdom or Dataroma: These sites aggregate 13F filings into easy-to-read formats.
- Watch the Credit Markets: Soros often moves into equity via debt restructuring. If a big company is struggling but has a solid core, see if SFM is buying their bonds.
- Analyze the Macro: Soros bets on countries and currencies as much as companies. If he’s buying U.S. homebuilders, he’s betting on a specific interest rate environment.
The "Soros Empire" is less of a fixed kingdom and more of a fluid, ever-changing collection of bets on where the world is headed next. It’s a mix of high-growth tech, essential infrastructure, and strategic media plays, all designed to keep a multibillion-dollar machine running.