Baron Opportunity Fund’s Q4 Letter Details Portfolio Shift: Adds Axon, Sells Trade Desk and Duolingo

Overview

• Baron reported a 4.63% return in Q4 2025 and a 19.73% gain for the full year, topping its growth benchmark and the S&P 500.
• The fund initiated a position in Axon Enterprise, highlighting its integrated public‑safety platform and the Draft One generative‑AI report writer.
• Baron says Draft One can generate police report narratives from body‑camera audio in seconds and help officers save about 40% of their time.
• The fund exited The Trade Desk, citing Amazon’s growing ad‑tech push with exclusive Prime Video and Netflix inventory, lower take rates, and recent executive turnover, while noting it may revisit the name.
• It sold Duolingo after observing sustained user‑growth deceleration and management’s decision to delay monetization levers that coincided with a slowdown in bookings growth; Axon’s Q4 revenue rose 39% year over year to $797 million, with shares last closing at $506.57 and a market value near $40.7 billion.