Do Hedge Funds and Insiders Love Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH)?

Should Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH) investors track the following data?

In the financial world, there are dozens of methods shareholders can use to track the equity markets. A duo of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the top hedge fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a solid margin (see just how much).

Equally as necessary, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to analyze the investments you’re interested in. There are many incentives for an executive to downsize shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would buy. Various academic studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if investors understand where to look (learn more here).

What’s more, let’s analyze the recent info surrounding Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH).

What have hedge funds been doing with Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH)?

At Q2’s end, a total of 11 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 38% from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes meaningfully.

When using filings from the hedgies we track, Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates had the largest position in Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH), worth close to $103.2 million, accounting for 0.3% of its total 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Odey Asset Management Group, managed by Crispin Odey, which held a $66.2 million position; 2.6% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Donald Chiboucis’s Columbus Circle Investors, Gilchrist Berg’s Water Street Capital and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.

As aggregate interest spiked, particular hedge funds have jumped into Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH) headfirst. Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, initiated the largest position in Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH). Royce & Associates had 103.2 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Crispin Odey’s Odey Asset Management Group also made a $66.2 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Donald Chiboucis’s Columbus Circle Investors, Gilchrist Berg’s Water Street Capital, and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.

How are insiders trading Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH)?

Insider buying made by high-level executives is best served when the primary stock in question has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time period, Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll also take a look at the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. (NYSE:ETH). These stocks are Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE:TPX), American Woodmark Corporation (NASDAQ:AMWD), Mattress Firm Holding Corp (NASDAQ:MFRM), Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ:SCSS), and La-Z-Boy Incorporated (NYSE:LZB). This group of stocks belong to the home furnishings & fixtures industry and their market caps are similar to ETH’s market cap.