Do Hedge Funds and Insiders Love Furmanite Corporation (FRM)?

Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM) was in 7 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the first quarter of 2013. FRM has experienced a decrease in hedge fund sentiment of late. There were 7 hedge funds in our database with FRM holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

To the average investor, there are tons of gauges shareholders can use to analyze their holdings. Two of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading movement. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite fund managers can outperform the market by a solid margin (see just how much).

Just as integral, bullish insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the investments you’re interested in. There are a variety of stimuli for an upper level exec to downsize shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would buy. Plenty of empirical studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if investors know what to do (learn more here).

Now, it’s important to take a look at the key action surrounding Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM).

How are hedge funds trading Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM)?

In preparation for this quarter, a total of 7 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 0% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few notable hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes meaningfully.

Of the funds we track, GAMCO Investors, managed by Mario Gabelli, holds the largest position in Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM). GAMCO Investors has a $10.7 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, which held a $9.9 million position; less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Remaining peers with similar optimism include John W. Rogers’s Ariel Investments, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.

Judging by the fact that Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM) has witnessed declining sentiment from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, logic holds that there exists a select few hedge funds who were dropping their entire stakes at the end of the first quarter. At the top of the heap, Andy Redleaf’s Whitebox Advisors dropped the largest position of the 450+ funds we watch, valued at close to $1.1 million in stock. These moves are interesting, as total hedge fund interest stayed the same (this is a bearish signal in our experience).

How are insiders trading Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM)?

Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is most useful when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest six-month time frame, Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM) has experienced 2 unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

With the returns demonstrated by our time-tested strategies, everyday investors must always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Furmanite Corporation (NYSE:FRM) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.

Click here to learn why you should track hedge funds