AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX) investors should be aware of a decrease in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds recently.
In the eyes of most traders, hedge funds are perceived as slow, outdated investment vehicles of the past. While there are more than 8000 funds with their doors open at the moment, we look at the top tier of this club, close to 450 funds. It is estimated that this group oversees the majority of the hedge fund industry’s total capital, and by tracking their top picks, we have deciphered a few investment strategies that have historically outperformed the broader indices. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per year 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 trumped the S&P 500 index by 25 percentage points in 6.5 month (see all of our picks from August).
Equally as key, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the financial markets. Obviously, there are a variety of stimuli for an insider to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Several academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this method if piggybackers understand what to do (learn more here).
With these “truths” under our belt, let’s take a gander at the latest action encompassing AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX).
What does the smart money think about AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX)?
At year’s end, a total of 19 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -10% from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes meaningfully.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Paulson & Co, managed by John Paulson, holds the most valuable position in AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX). Paulson & Co has a $294 million position in the stock, comprising 1.8% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Luxor Capital Group, managed by Christian Leone, which held a $219 million position; the fund has 7.7% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedge funds that hold long positions include Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors, Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.
Because AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX) has faced a declination in interest from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, it’s easy to see that there exists a select few funds who were dropping their full holdings heading into 2013. It’s worth mentioning that Charles Clough’s Clough Capital Partners sold off the largest investment of all the hedgies we track, valued at an estimated $16 million in stock., and Andrew Sandler of Sandler Capital Management was right behind this move, as the fund dumped about $7 million worth. These bearish behaviors are important to note, as aggregate hedge fund interest was cut by 2 funds heading into 2013.
Insider trading activity in AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX)
Bullish insider trading is best served when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the last half-year time frame, AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 4 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the returns exhibited by Insider Monkey’s strategies, retail investors should always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and AMC Networks Inc (NASDAQ:AMCX) applies perfectly to this mantra.
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