Hedge Funds Are Betting On Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC)

Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC) shareholders have witnessed an increase in hedge fund sentiment of late.

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are dozens of indicators market participants can use to track Mr. Market. Some of the most useful are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite investment managers can beat the S&P 500 by a superb margin (see just how much).

Equally as important, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to parse down the financial markets. As the old adage goes: there are many motivations for an executive to drop shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Plenty of empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if investors know where to look (learn more here).

Now, it’s important to take a gander at the key action regarding Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC).

Hedge fund activity in Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC)

At the end of the fourth quarter, a total of 20 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 43% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes significantly.

According to our comprehensive database, Kerr Neilson’s Platinum Asset Management had the largest position in Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC), worth close to $183 million, accounting for 4.1% of its total 13F portfolio. On Platinum Asset Management’s heels is Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, which held a $53 million position; the fund has 0.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that hold long positions include Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management and William Harnisch’s Peconic Partners LLC.

As aggregate interest increased, some big names were leading the bulls’ herd. Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, assembled the most valuable position in Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC). Renaissance Technologies had 12 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management also made a $11 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new JEC positions are William Harnisch’s Peconic Partners LLC, Stanley Shopkorn and Douglas Day’s Hilltop Park Associates, and Ken Gray and Steve Walsh’s Bryn Mawr Capital.

How have insiders been trading Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC)?

Bullish insider trading is particularly usable when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last 180-day time period, Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and 3 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

With the results demonstrated by our strategies, everyday investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Jacobs Engineering Group Inc (NYSE:JEC) applies perfectly to this mantra.

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