The Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) share price reached a new 52-week high earlier today, going above $32 and hitting $32.08.
Investment conglomerate is known for owning a large portfolio of different assets including small-cap ASX shares, blue-chip ASX shares, property, debt, private businesses and a portfolio of shares where it owns large stakes.
It's those large stakes that could be a key driver of the Soul Pattinson share price rising by 15% since 20 March 2023.
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Investments increase
Some of Soul Pattinson's biggest investments include its 12.8% stake in telecommunications provider TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) and the 43.1% it owns in building products business Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW).
Since 6 April 2023, the Brickworks share price has gone up by 9.5%.
From 28 March 2023 to now, the TPG share price has risen by 18%.
These were two of the three biggest investments within the Soul Pattinson portfolio at 31 January 2023.
Some of its other largest investments have risen over the last month or two. For example, the Tuas Ltd (ASX: TUA) share price has gone up by around 40% since 20 March 2023, the Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) share price has risen by 6.25% since 27 March 2023 and the CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price has gone up 8.9% from 14 March 2023.
The Soul Pattinson share price can benefit from these gains because it increases the underlying portfolio value.
The business said that it had a total net asset value (NAV), pre-tax, of $10.5 billion at 31 January 2023. The NAV could have risen further since then.
What next for the Soul Pattinson share price?
The performance of Soul Pattinson shares could come down to a mixture of how the underlying NAV performs and what investors are willing to pay for that NAV.
When the investment business released its FY23 half-year result, it said that in February 2023, the total portfolio outperformed the All Ordinaries Accumulation Index (ASX: XAOA) as its defensive portfolio settings "gain traction" in the current market.
It noted it has "strong" cash reserves and an active pipeline of investments under consideration. The business is looking to deploy that money into "robust, defensible models and uncorrelated assets." The company believes that having a long-term view assists in investing through market volatility.
Soul Pattinson share price snapshot
Since the start of 2023, Soul Pattinson shares have risen by around 18%.
