Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB) investors should be aware of an increase in hedge fund interest in recent months.
In the financial world, there are plenty of methods shareholders can use to monitor stocks. A duo of the best are hedge fund and insider trading movement. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a very impressive margin (see just how much).
Just as integral, positive insider trading sentiment is a second way to break down the financial markets. As the old adage goes: there are a number of motivations for a bullish insider to drop shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would buy. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if “monkeys” understand what to do (learn more here).
Consequently, we’re going to take a gander at the key action regarding Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB).
What does the smart money think about Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB)?
At year’s end, a total of 10 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 25% from the third quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings significantly.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates had the largest position in Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB), worth close to $12 million, comprising 0% of its total 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, which held a $5 million position; the fund has 0% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedgies with similar optimism include Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management and Peter Algert and Kevin Coldiron’s Algert Coldiron Investors.
As one would reasonably expect, some big names have jumped into Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB) headfirst. Algert Coldiron Investors, managed by Peter Algert and Kevin Coldiron, initiated the most outsized position in Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB). Algert Coldiron Investors had 1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Thomas Bailard’s Bailard Inc also made a $0 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The only other fund with a new position in the stock is Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital.
How have insiders been trading Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is at its handiest when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the last 180-day time frame, Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also review hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB). These stocks are Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS), TTM Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTMI), Park Electrochemical Corp. (NYSE:PKE), Multi-Fineline Electronix, Inc. (NASDAQ:MFLX), and Viasystems Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAS). This group of stocks are the members of the printed circuit boards industry and their market caps are closest to KBALB’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS) | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| TTM Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTMI) | 8 | 0 | 5 |
| Park Electrochemical Corp. (NYSE:PKE) | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| Multi-Fineline Electronix, Inc. (NASDAQ:MFLX) | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Viasystems Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIAS) | 3 | 3 | 0 |
With the results exhibited by Insider Monkey’s time-tested strategies, retail investors must always monitor hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Kimball International (NASDAQ:KBALB) is no exception.
