Though his name lost some of its luster with the ‘sell’ recommendation for S&P 500 and other U.S. stocks right before the index started one of its strongest bull cycles and with a poorly-timed bet against the semiconductor industry, Michael Burry might have taken the most decisive victory over the 2025 market.
Instead of setting up a major long position wagering on the U.S. economy, ‘The Big Short’ trader invested most of his portfolio – 43% – in three Chinese technology companies.
Considering that the S&P 500 is 3.62% down since the start of the year and at 5,656 points, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) fell 1.29% to 41,846, Burry’s biggest mistake appears to have been not investing even more money in China.
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Here’s by how much Michael Burry beat the stock market in 2025
According to the latest 13-f filing for Scion Asset Management, none of the three biggest Michael Burry positions performed better than the technology, e-commerce, and artificial intelligence (AI) giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA).
The company managed a remarkable 68.78% surge in 2025, and BABA shares are, at press time, changing hands at $143.11. Since Burry’s position amounted to 150,000 shares worth $12.7 million on December 31, he had made almost $9 million by press time, and the position grew to $21.4 million, assuming he executed neither buys nor sales.
JD.com (NASDAQ: JD) also offered a strong performance, rising 29.12% to $44.77. Burry is known to have owned 300,000 JD shares worth $10.4 million, making $3 million, as the stake was worth $13.4 million on March 19.
Baidu (NASDAQ: BIDU) did not disappoint either, and – with Baidu stock rallying 16.37% year-to-date (YTD) to $98.41 – ‘The Big Short’ investor’s 125,000 shares soared from $10.5 million to $12.2 million: $1.7 million in profit.
Here’s how much Michael Burry would have lost if he invested in the U.S.
In total, Michael Burry’s biggest three portfolio holdings soared from a cumulative value of $33.6 million on December 31, 2024, to $47 million on March 19, 2025. Had he invested the same amount in the S&P 500, the investment would have been worth $32.4 million at press time.
Similarly, had he opted to invest in Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), the stake would have fallen to $20.9 million, and even purchasing Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) shares would have led to $5 million in losses, as the position would have fallen to $28.5 million.
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