Copying Hennessy Advisors Would Have Made You 130% Last Year - Here’s Where Their Conviction Is Now

Markets are a mess. Recession whispers. Rate flip-flops. Headlines screaming “uncertainty.”

But a few investors don’t panic — they prepare.

Take Hennessy Advisors. While the S&P did quite good in 2024, they went full beast mode. If you’d blindly mirrored their Top 10? You’d be up 130%. No crypto, no moonshots, no YOLO.

So the question is:

Who Is Hennessy Advisors?

Founded in 1989, Hennessy Advisors, Inc manages a U.S.-based hedge fund overseeing approximately $3 billion in assets under management (AUM). They are often leaning into overlooked or underloved sectors like consumer discretionary, utilities, and industrials.

Let’s look at how they crushed 2024:

Not bad for a portfolio with names like Cheesecake Factory and Peleton Interactive. But here’s the thing — they just dropped their Q1 2025 13F, and the plays are changing.

🔍 What They’re Holding Now

Hennessy trimmed nearly every position. They’re reducing equity exposure, and slightly upped their cash.

But two stocks quietly got promotions — both in size and conviction:

While most positions saw reductions, two stocks got bigger:

🍔 Brinker International (EAT)

• Now their #1 position at 2.8% (up from 2.4%)

• Only entered the portfolio last quarter

• They’re doubling down early — that’s rare

Brinker owns and operates casual dining restaurants — most notably Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy. They’re a major player in the U.S. dining space, with over 1,600 restaurants globally.

Why It Matters:

• Casual dining isn’t exactly hot right now — but that’s the point.

• Brinker has been aggressively cutting costs and boosting margins, especially in labor and food inputs.

• Despite macro headwinds, traffic trends have stabilized, and same-store sales have surprised to the upside.

• New digital and delivery initiatives (e.g. virtual brands like “It’s Just Wings”) are quietly adding growth.

• Management just raised full-year EPS guidance in their last earnings call.

🔥 UGI Corp (UGI)

• Increased from 0.1% to 2.0% last quarter, now 2.4%

• Long-held position — but last quarter was the first major allocation

• Utilities + energy exposure = safety + upside?

UGI is a diversified energy company. They’re involved in: Propane distribution (via AmeriGas — the largest in the U.S.), Natural gas and electric utilities (serving ~700,000 customers) and Midstream infrastructure (pipelines, storage).

Why It Matters:

• This is a boring company — and boring can be beautiful in choppy markets.

• UGI offers a defensive play with cash flow stability, plus upside from energy infrastructure and LNG exposure.

• It also pays a healthy dividend (currently around 6.5%) — a big draw when rates are volatile.

• Recently restructured debt and cost base to improve long-term profitability.

• Spinoff of non-core LPG business in Europe expected to simplify operations.

• Rebound in natural gas prices could be a tailwind.

This isn’t a YOLO portfolio. It’s tactical.

• Most names trimmed (PTON, ALK, CAKE, LNC…)

• Slight cash increase = caution

• Two plays (EAT, UGI) stand out — higher weights = higher belief

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