Omega Advisors Chairman and CEO Leon Cooperman revealed his top investment ideas for 2017 during an extensive interview Thursday with CNBC's Scott Wapner.
Given the strong rally since the U.S. presidential election, the billionaire hedge fund manager thinks the stock market is "reasonably fully valued," so investors should temper their enthusiasm about the potential gains ahead and instead focus on individual companies.
"I find myself very comfortable with the stocks that I own, which we think are value [stocks], but on the overall market, I'm fairly neutral to mildly positive," he said.
In this candid conversation, Cooperman shares his investment approach, and is joined by Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel to debate market valuations. Other topics include:
- Why he's convinced he'll be exonerated from the insider trading charges brought up by the SEC.
- President-elect Donald Trump's agenda and the possible long-term effects on the market.
- Why higher interest rates could deter the market's advance.
- The trend in corporate earnings given the potential for lower taxes and repatriation incentives.
- Why his hedge fund is long shares of Alphabet, Facebook and Amazon.
- Ten of his favorite value stocks for 2017, including Hess and MGM Resorts.
To watch the "Halftime Report" interview in its entirety, you must be a CNBC PRO subscriber.
