Hedge Funds Are Buying Parker Drilling Company (PKD)

Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD) was in 20 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. PKD investors should pay attention to an increase in support from the world’s most elite money managers recently. There were 18 hedge funds in our database with PKD holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

In today’s marketplace, there are a multitude of methods investors can use to monitor Mr. Market. Two 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 best fund managers can outpace the S&P 500 by a solid amount (see just how much).

Just as important, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to parse down the investments you’re interested in. Obviously, there are lots of reasons for a bullish insider to downsize shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Many academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this strategy if you understand what to do (learn more here).

With these “truths” under our belt, let’s take a glance at the latest action surrounding Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD).

How have hedgies been trading Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD)?

At the end of the first quarter, a total of 20 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 11% from the first 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 boosting their stakes meaningfully.

When looking at the hedgies we track, AQR Capital Management, managed by Cliff Asness, holds the largest position in Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD). AQR Capital Management has a $10.5 million position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Blue Mountain Capital, managed by Andrew Feldstein and Stephen Siderow, which held a $7.8 million position; the fund has 0.5% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers with similar optimism include Boaz Weinstein’s Saba Capital, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.

With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, some big names have been driving this bullishness. Steel Partners, managed by Warren Lichtenstein, initiated the biggest position in Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD). Steel Partners had 0.9 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Paul Tudor Jones’s Tudor Investment Corp also made a $0.3 million investment in the stock during the quarter.

Insider trading activity in Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD)

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 latest 180-day time frame, Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, 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 Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD). These stocks are Magnum Hunter Resources Corp (NYSE:MHR), Advantage Oil & Gas Ltd (USA) (NYSE:AAV), Vantage Drilling Company (NYSEAMEX:VTG), and Pioneer Energy Services Corp (NYSE:PES). This group of stocks are in the oil & gas drilling & exploration industry and their market caps match PKD’s market cap.

With the returns demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s tactics, everyday investors must always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Parker Drilling Company (NYSE:PKD) is no exception.

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