CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS) was in 45 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. CBS has seen an increase in hedge fund sentiment recently. There were 43 hedge funds in our database with CBS holdings at the end of the previous quarter.
To most shareholders, hedge funds are perceived as underperforming, outdated financial tools of the past. While there are more than 8000 funds with their doors open at present, we at Insider Monkey look at the elite of this group, about 450 funds. It is estimated that this group controls most of all hedge funds’ total asset base, and by keeping an eye on their top equity investments, we have uncovered a few investment strategies that have historically beaten Mr. Market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outperformed the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve started sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have beaten the S&P 500 index by 25 percentage points in 6.5 month (see all of our picks from August).
Equally as important, bullish insider trading activity is another way to parse down the world of equities. Just as you’d expect, there are many incentives for a corporate insider to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would initiate a purchase. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if “monkeys” know where to look (learn more here).
Keeping this in mind, let’s take a glance at the recent action encompassing CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS).
How have hedgies been trading CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS)?
At the end of the fourth quarter, a total of 45 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 5% from the third quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings substantially.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Greenlight Capital, managed by David Einhorn, holds the largest position in CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS). Greenlight Capital has a $205 million billion position in the stock, comprising 3.2% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Highfields Capital Management, managed by Jonathon Jacobson, which held a $156 million position; 1.7% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other peers that hold long positions include Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management, Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors and Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors.
As aggregate interest increased, specific money managers have jumped into CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS) headfirst. Highfields Capital Management, managed by Jonathon Jacobson, established the most valuable position in CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS). Highfields Capital Management had 156 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management also initiated a $119 million position during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new CBS investors: , Keith Meister’s Corvex Capital, and .
How have insiders been trading CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS)?
Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is best served when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the last half-year time period, CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the returns demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s studies, everyday investors must always monitor hedge fund and insider trading activity, and CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS) is no exception.
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