Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB) was in 13 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. GB has experienced an increase in hedge fund sentiment recently. There were 10 hedge funds in our database with GB positions at the end of the previous quarter.
To most investors, hedge funds are assumed to be unimportant, outdated investment vehicles of years past. While there are over 8000 funds trading today, we look at the top tier of this group, about 450 funds. It is widely believed that this group has its hands on most of the smart money’s total asset base, and by keeping an eye on their top picks, we have identified a number of investment strategies that have historically outpaced the S&P 500 index. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy beat the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points annually for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to 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).
Just as beneficial, optimistic insider trading sentiment is another way to break down the stock market universe. Obviously, there are plenty of incentives for an upper level exec to drop 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 tactic if you understand where to look (learn more here).
Now, let’s take a glance at the key action surrounding Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB).
What have hedge funds been doing with Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB)?
Heading into 2013, a total of 13 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 30% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings considerably.
Of the funds we track, Diamond Hill Capital, managed by Ric Dillon, holds the biggest position in Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB). Diamond Hill Capital has a $14 million position in the stock, comprising 0.2% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Mario Gabelli of GAMCO Investors, with a $7 million position; the fund has 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers that are bullish include Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates, Jacob Gottlieb’s Visium Asset Management and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.
With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, some big names were leading the bulls’ herd. Tudor Investment Corp, managed by Paul Tudor Jones, created the largest position in Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB). Tudor Investment Corp had 1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Gray and Steve Walsh’s Bryn Mawr Capital also initiated a $0 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Mike Vranos’s Ellington, and Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group.
How are insiders trading Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB)?
Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is most useful when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest half-year time period, Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also take a look at hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB). These stocks are NuVasive, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUVA), The Spectranetics Corporation (NASDAQ:SPNC), NxStage Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXTM), Orthofix International NV (NASDAQ:OFIX), and ABIOMED, Inc. (NASDAQ:ABMD). This group of stocks are the members of the medical appliances & equipment industry and their market caps match GB’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| NuVasive, Inc. (NASDAQ:NUVA) | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| The Spectranetics Corporation (NASDAQ:SPNC) | 12 | 1 | 2 |
| NxStage Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXTM) | 17 | 0 | 2 |
| Orthofix International NV (NASDAQ:OFIX) | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| ABIOMED, Inc. (NASDAQ:ABMD) | 12 | 1 | 1 |
With the results demonstrated by our research, everyday investors must always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Greatbatch Inc (NYSE:GB) is an important part of this process.
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