Is AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU) going to take off soon? The smart money is getting more bullish. The number of long hedge fund positions moved up by 1 recently.
In the financial world, there are dozens of gauges investors can use to watch the equity markets. A duo of the most underrated are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite hedge fund managers can outperform their index-focused peers by a superb amount (see just how much).
Equally as beneficial, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to parse down the financial markets. There are many incentives for an insider to get rid of shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this method if investors know what to do (learn more here).
Consequently, we’re going to take a peek at the key action encompassing AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU).
What does the smart money think about AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU)?
Heading into 2013, a total of 4 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 33% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings meaningfully.
Consequently, some big names have been driving this bullishness. McKinley Capital Management, managed by Robert B. Gillam, created the most outsized position in AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU). McKinley Capital Management had 1.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the company in question has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last half-year time period, AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU) has seen 1 unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU). These stocks are Targa Resources Corp (NYSE:TRGP), AGL Resources Inc. (NYSE:GAS), Integrys Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:TEG), Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO), and Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR). This group of stocks are in the gas utilities industry and their market caps resemble APU’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Targa Resources Corp (NYSE:TRGP) | 11 | 0 | 1 |
| AGL Resources Inc. (NYSE:GAS) | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| Integrys Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:TEG) | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) | 5 | 0 | 3 |
| Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) | 10 | 0 | 3 |
With the results exhibited by our studies, retail investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU) applies perfectly to this mantra.
