Adria Cimino, The Motley Fool

Mon, May 19, 2025, 1:45 AM6 min read

• Druckenmiller sold Nvidia as it continued to soar and even expressed regret about the decision -- but the move still represented an investing win for him.

• He recently exited another stock that analysts say has gotten too expensive.

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Artificial intelligence (AI) stocks have surged in recent years as the AI boom picked up speed -- investors eagerly piled into these players with the hope that AI would become the next game-changing technology, much like the Internet, or moving much farther back in history, the steam engine. This is very possible, considering AI's ability to help companies gain in efficiency, problem solve, and even develop better products faster.

This investing theme hasn't only appealed to small retail investors but also to billionaires. In fact, many got in on some of the top players early and have already locked in profit. A great example is Stanley Druckenmiller, who for 30 years at the helm of Duquesne Capital delivered an average annual gain of 30% and never had a money-losing year. So Druckenmiller has proved his ability to choose winning stocks over time.

Last year, now at the head of the Duquesne Family office, the billionaire made a shocking move, selling all of his shares of AI chip leader Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) as the stock soared. He originally bought the stock in the fourth quarter of 2022, so he scored a win on the investment, but at the time of Druckenmiller's sale, it was clear Nvidia still had a bright earnings growth story ahead. Even Druckenmiller expressed some disappointment at his own move, saying Nvidia stock had gotten expensive, but he believes in the company's potential and would consider buying the stock again.

Now, in the first quarter of this year, Druckenmiller has made another bold move -- this time concerning a market-beating AI stock that's soared 1,500% over the past three years. Let's take a closer look at this latest billionaire bet.

First, a quick note about what's happened with Nvidia stock since Druckenmiller sold it. The billionaire could have gained a bit more if he held on an extra quarter -- he sold Nvidia in the third quarter, and it went on to climb another 14% in the fourth quarter. But if he'd held on to it through the first quarter of this year, he would have accompanied Nvidia through its 29% loss from the start of the year through its lowest point last month.

All of this shows it's impossible to time the market and buy at the absolute lowest and sell at the highest -- but if you hold on for a matter of years, you don't have to do that. Long-term investing offers us plenty of time to score a very satisfactory win.