Is Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT) a bargain? Hedge funds are taking a bullish view. The number of long hedge fund bets improved by 3 recently.
In the financial world, there are tons of gauges investors can use to watch Mr. Market. A duo of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best investment managers can outclass the S&P 500 by a significant margin (see just how much).
Just as beneficial, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to break down the financial markets. Just as you’d expect, there are a number of incentives for a bullish insider to drop shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would buy. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this tactic if shareholders know where to look (learn more here).
Consequently, let’s take a look at the key action surrounding Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT).
How have hedgies been trading Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT)?
Heading into Q2, a total of 16 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 23% from the previous quarter. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings significantly.
Of the funds we track, Long Pond Capital, managed by John Khoury, holds the biggest position in Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT). Long Pond Capital has a $32.9 million position in the stock, comprising 5.8% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by J. Alan Reid, Jr. of Forward Management, with a $19.9 million position; the fund has 1.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other peers that hold long positions include Robert Jaffe’s Force Capital, Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management and David Dreman’s Dreman Value Management.
As industrywide interest jumped, specific money managers were breaking ground themselves. Dreman Value Management, managed by David Dreman, assembled the most outsized position in Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT). Dreman Value Management had 6.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies also initiated a $1.3 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, and Matthew Tewksbury’s Stevens Capital Management.
How are insiders trading Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT)?
Insider buying is best served when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the latest half-year time period, Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s go over hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT). These stocks are DiamondRock Hospitality Company (NYSE:DRH), Strategic Hotels and Resorts Inc (NYSE:BEE), Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE:PEB), Chesapeake Lodging Trust (NYSE:CHSP), and FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated (NYSE:FCH). This group of stocks are in the reit – hotel/motel industry and their market caps match AHT’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| DiamondRock Hospitality Company (NYSE:DRH) | 15 | 0 | 0 |
| Strategic Hotels and Resorts Inc (NYSE:BEE) | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE:PEB) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Chesapeake Lodging Trust (NYSE:CHSP) | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated (NYSE:FCH) | 15 | 5 | 0 |
With the results demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s studies, everyday investors should always monitor hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE:AHT) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.
