Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) has experienced a decrease in enthusiasm from smart money recently.
At the moment, there are a multitude of indicators investors can use to analyze Mr. Market. Some of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite investment managers can outperform the market by a solid amount (see just how much).
Just as integral, optimistic insider trading activity is a second way to break down the stock market universe. There are a number of motivations for an upper level exec to downsize shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Plenty of empirical studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if investors understand what to do (learn more here).
With these “truths” under our belt, let’s take a peek at the recent action encompassing Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR).
How have hedgies been trading Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR)?
At the end of the fourth quarter, a total of 10 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -9% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ capital changing hands, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes meaningfully.
According to our comprehensive database, John Osterweis’s Osterweis Capital Management had the largest position in Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR), worth close to $70 million, accounting for 3.1% of its total 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Carlson Capital, managed by Clint Carlson, which held a $15 million position; the fund has 0.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedgies with similar optimism include Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, and Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group.
Judging by the fact that Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) has faced bearish sentiment from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, it’s easy to see that there lies a certain “tier” of funds that slashed their positions entirely in Q4. At the top of the heap, D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw said goodbye to the largest investment of the 450+ funds we monitor, totaling about $3 million in stock.. Steven Cohen’s fund, SAC Capital Advisors, also said goodbye to its stock, about $2 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as total hedge fund interest fell by 1 funds in Q4.
How are insiders trading Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the primary stock in question has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last six-month time period, Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 3 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 Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR). These stocks are Targa Resources Corp (NYSE:TRGP), AGL Resources Inc. (NYSE:GAS), Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO), Integrys Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:TEG), and AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (NYSE:APU). This group of stocks are in the gas utilities industry and their market caps resemble STR’s market cap.
