Inside the $88 Million Vote of Confidence: Why a Global Fund is Making Chart Industries an 11% Position

A Strategic Wager on Industrial Equipment Leadership

When a sophisticated emerging market fund commits roughly 11% of its reportable U.S. equity portfolio to a single name, that’s rarely a casual bet. Absolute Gestao de Investimentos, a São Paulo-based asset manager, just sent exactly that signal by deploying $88.22 million into Chart Industries during the third quarter—a move that reveals something important about where professional investors see opportunity.

The fund’s entry came through 440,746 shares of Chart Industries (NYSE: GTLS) acquired in Q3, as disclosed in an SEC filing dated November 13. This stake represents the fund’s third-largest position among 35 total equity holdings valued at $769.14 million in U.S. markets.

The Fundamentals Driving the Conviction

Here’s where the investment thesis becomes compelling. Chart Industries isn’t benefiting from momentum—it’s positioned at the intersection of multiple structural tailwinds. The company reported orders that jumped 43.7% year-over-year to a record $1.68 billion in the third quarter alone, with total backlog now exceeding $6 billion.

That’s not noise. That’s evidence of a company running at full capacity across LNG infrastructure, hydrogen systems, carbon capture equipment, and data center cooling solutions. Even after absorbing one-time merger termination costs, the company achieved adjusted operating margins near 23%—a testament to underlying earnings power that remains largely under-appreciated by the market.

Chart designs and manufactures specialized cryogenic storage tanks, heat exchangers, regasification systems, and custom solutions serving energy companies, industrial gas producers, and aerospace clients worldwide. The business model generates revenue through capital equipment sales, process technology licensing, aftermarket services, and equipment leasing.

The Portfolio Context

Absolute Gestao’s largest holdings tell a story:

• CyberArk Software (CYBR): $92.23 million (12.19% of AUM)
• iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM): $89.72 million (11.85% of AUM)
• Chart Industries (GTLS): $88.22 million (11.47% of AUM)
• iShares MSCI Brazil Capped ETF (EWZ): $48.85 million (6.45% of AUM)
• iShares Emerging Markets Equity ETF Strategy (EMXC): $48.27 million (6.38% of AUM)

The Chart position sits neatly between emerging market exposure and cybersecurity investments—a deliberate pairing that suggests the fund sees industrial energy transition as a core emerging market theme.

What the Market Is Missing

Chart Industries shares closed Friday at $205.85, up just 5% over the past 12 months while the S&P 500 has climbed roughly 15% in the same period. Translation: the market has largely dismissed the company despite its operational acceleration.

There’s also a layer of acquisition upside embedded here. Baker Hughes announced a pending takeover at $210 per share—meaning the fund is potentially positioned for a modest premium if the deal closes in 2026 as expected. Whether Absolute Gestao entered before or after that announcement remains unknown, but the $210 floor does provide some downside protection.

The Bigger Picture for Investors

Concentration breeds credibility. A fund manager doesn’t carve out an 11% position based on technical patterns or momentum plays. They do it when fundamentals point to years of profitable growth ahead.

Chart’s order book suggests demand is being written years in advance. Customers—whether energy companies securing LNG infrastructure or data centers requiring specialized cooling—are locking in capacity. That forward visibility, combined with margin expansion and energy transition tailwinds, explains why this investment makes strategic sense alongside both emerging market and global growth thematic bets.

For equity investors tracking large institutional moves, this filing is worth examining. It signals that sophisticated capital sees Chart Industries as more than just an industrial cyclical play—it’s a direct beneficiary of the global energy transition and infrastructure buildout happening across markets right now.