Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN) was in 20 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the first quarter of 2013. CFFN has experienced an increase in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds of late. There were 19 hedge funds in our database with CFFN positions at the end of the previous quarter.
If you’d ask most investors, hedge funds are assumed to be underperforming, outdated financial tools of the past. While there are more than 8000 funds in operation at the moment, we hone in on the upper echelon of this group, around 450 funds. It is estimated that this group controls the lion’s share of the hedge fund industry’s total capital, and by watching their best equity investments, we have spotted a number of investment strategies that have historically beaten the S&P 500 index. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outperformed the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per year for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have topped the S&P 500 index by 23.3 percentage points in 8 months (see all of our picks from August).
Just as beneficial, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to break down the stock market universe. As the old adage goes: there are plenty of reasons for a bullish insider to downsize shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Many academic studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this tactic if piggybackers understand where to look (learn more here).
With these “truths” under our belt, it’s important to take a look at the key action encompassing Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN).
Hedge fund activity in Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN)
At Q1’s end, a total of 20 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 5% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially.
According to our comprehensive database, Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, holds the biggest position in Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN). Renaissance Technologies has a $47.3 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. On Renaissance Technologies’s heels is Ken Fisher of Fisher Asset Management, with a $29.1 million position; the fund has 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that hold long positions include Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Howard Guberman’s Gruss Asset Management and John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors.
Consequently, some big names have jumped into Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN) headfirst. Stevens Capital Management, managed by Matthew Tewksbury, assembled the largest position in Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN). Stevens Capital Management had 1.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN)?
Bullish insider trading is best served when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest 180-day time period, Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN) has experienced 2 unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also take a look at hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Capitol Federal Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:CFFN). These stocks are First Niagara Financial Group Inc. (NASDAQ:FNFG), Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NWBI), Sterling Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:STSA), Investors Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISBC), and Washington Federal Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD). This group of stocks are the members of the savings & loans industry and their market caps resemble CFFN’s market cap.
