Body Central Corp (BODY): Hedge Funds Aren’t Crazy About It, Insider Sentiment Unchanged

At the moment, there are dozens of gauges shareholders can use to analyze stocks. Two of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top fund managers can trounce the market by a superb amount (see just how much).

Just as crucial, positive insider trading activity is a second way to analyze the stock market universe. There are lots of incentives for a bullish insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would initiate a purchase. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this tactic if investors understand where to look (learn more here).

Keeping this in mind, we’re going to examine the newest info surrounding Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY).

How have hedgies been trading Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY)?

In preparation for the third quarter, a total of 9 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of -18% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings substantially.

According to our 13F database, Thomas Ellis and Todd Hammer’s North Run Capital had the biggest position in Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY), worth close to $20 million, comprising 2.3% of its total 13F portfolio. On North Run Capital’s heels is Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, which held a $5.4 million position; the fund has less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedge funds that hold long positions include Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Robert B. Gillam’s McKinley Capital Management and Zeke Ashton’s Centaur Capital Partners.

Judging by the fact that Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY) has witnessed declining interest from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, logic holds that there exists a select few hedgies who were dropping their full holdings heading into Q2. It’s worth mentioning that Peter Algert and Kevin Coldiron’s Algert Coldiron Investors said goodbye to the biggest investment of the 450+ funds we monitor, totaling about $0.4 million in stock. Israel Englander’s fund, Millennium Management, also said goodbye to its stock, about $0.4 million worth. These bearish behaviors are interesting, as total hedge fund interest was cut by 2 funds heading into Q2.

What have insiders been doing with Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY)?

Insider buying made by high-level executives is most useful when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest six-month time frame, Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll check out the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY). These stocks are Destination XL Group Inc (NASDAQ:DXLG), Christopher & Banks Corporation (NYSE:CBK), Cherokee Inc. (NASDAQ:CHKE), Pacific Sunwear of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSUN), and Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ:CTRN). This group of stocks are in the apparel stores industry and their market caps are closest to BODY’s market cap.

Using the returns shown by the previously mentioned research, average investors should always keep one eye on hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Body Central Corp (NASDAQ:BODY) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.

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