Billionaire investor Bill Ackman warned earlier this week that excessive speculation was making the stock market increasingly unstable. Two days later, Wall Street suffered another sharp selloff. The Nasdaq Composite dropped more than 3% in Thursday morning trading, Nov. 5, while the S&P 500 fell roughly 2%, as technology and semiconductor stocks came under pressure. “Every number of days, I feel like markets are broken,” Ackman said on CNBC on Tuesday, Nov. 3. “Stocks trade at prices that make no sense to me. Yes, it’s good if you’re a long-term investor and you can buy at a stupid price. I don’t think it’s good for the country generally.” Also read: Non-AI stock surges 20% after earnings beat and raised outlook The founder of Pershing Square Capital Management blamed excessive leverage and speculative trading for driving stock prices far beyond what he believes businesses are worth. “We’re back to the casino-type markets when there was 95% leverage,” he said. “I don’t think that’s inherently good for the economy, for society, and it’s leading to these massive moves in stocks.” Ackman pointed to one-day leveraged investment products, perpetual futures and sports betting as examples of growing speculation. He said the volatility has also created buying opportunities for Pershing Square, which has invested billions of dollars in major companies during market selloffs this year. The firm bought Microsoft (MSFT) during the software stock rout known as the “SaaSpocalypse.” It also purchased Amazon (AMZN) after shares fell following President Donald Trump’s tariffs and Alphabet (GOOGL) when ChatGPT’s launch raised concerns about Google’s search business. “It’s good for us long term — ‘us’ being Pershing Square,” Ackman said. “I don’t think it’s good for the country.” Bill Ackman completed the IPO for Pershing Square in April 2026. Bloomberg / Getty Images Bill Ackman doesn’t see a slowdown in AI Despite his concerns about speculation, Ackman rejected comparisons between today’s market and the Roaring Twenties, the speculative boom that preceded the 1929 stock market crash. His comments followed a warning from Elliott Investment Management, which raised concerns in its October investor letter about debt-financed AI spending, circular financing arrangements and growing opposition to artificial intelligence. “I don’t. I don’t see a Roaring ’20s in the stock market. You know, if anything, this year earnings expectations have gone up meaningfully. And the multiple is actually reasonably low relative to the growth inherent in the market. So I’m not seeing that sort of bubble-like activity in markets.” Related: Cathie Wood buys $11.2 million of popular AI stock Ackman argued that stronger corporate earnings expectations have helped support stock valuations. He sees more stretched valuations in parts of the private market, particularly among venture-backed companies benefiting from investors’ fear of missing out. Still, he believes some highly valued startups have strong businesses. “I met with the Ramp team. Unbelievably impressive company. If I were American Express, I would be concerned.” Ramp provides corporate spending and financial management software, putting it in competition with established financial services companies. Ackman also opposed slowing U.S. AI development in response to political resistance to data center construction. “I think it’s a global race for super intelligence. We don’t want to get there second, right? That’s existential to the United States,” he said. “There are plenty of states that would be delighted to have the jobs…And we’ve got a lot of landmass in the United States.” What are Bill Ackman’s favorite stocks? In April, Ackman completed a $5 billion initial public offering of Pershing Square USA (PSUS). By June 30, it had invested across 14 positions, including six new holdings: Visa (V), Mastercard (MA), Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), Netflix (NFLX), Alcon (ALC) and S&P Global (SPGI). “They are simple, predictable, and free cash flow-generative, with strong competitive positions, minimal financial leverage and capital markets dependency, and are run by excellent management teams,” Ackman wrote in his second-quarter shareholder letter. Bill Ackman’s 14 holdings by weight and market value as of Q2 2026 Uber Technologies (UBER) | 12.72% | $2,476.98 million Brookfield Corporation (BN) | 12.58% | $2,448.12 million Microsoft (MSFT) | 11.89% | $2,315.23 million Amazon (AMZN) | 10.49% | $2,041.11 million Howard Hughes Holdings (HHH) | 10.23% | $1,991.14 million Restaurant Brands International (QSR) | 9.62% | $1,872.30 million Meta Platforms (META) | 9.25% | $1,800.31 million Visa (V) | 5.76% | $1,122.07 million Mastercard (MA) | 5.61% | $1,091.22 million S&P Global (SPGI) | 5.43% | $1,056.09 million Netflix (NFLX) | 4.80% | $934.02 million Pershing Square USA (PSUS) | 0.77% | $149.52 million Seaport Entertainment Group (SEG) | 0.69% | $133.63 million Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ) | 0.17% | $33.96 million The figures are from June 30 and may not reflect current positions. Pershing Square’s third-quarter 13F filing is expected in mid-November. Ackman was once known for making high-profile activist campaigns and his costly short bet against Herbalife. But he now focuses on long-term investments in established businesses. He announced in 2022 that he was retiring from activist short-selling and has since pursued his ambition of building a “modern-day version of Berkshire,” referring to Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. “Since our inception, we have achieved a gross return of 20% per annum,” Ackman wrote in his second-quarter shareholder letter. Related: Cathie Wood buys $10.9 million of tumbling tech stock
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