Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) was in 22 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. TAP investors should pay attention to a decrease in enthusiasm from smart money of late. There were 24 hedge funds in our database with TAP positions at the end of the previous quarter.
To the average investor, there are plenty of indicators investors can use to monitor Mr. Market. A pair of the most underrated 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 top fund managers can trounce their index-focused peers by a very impressive amount (see just how much).
Equally as key, bullish insider trading activity is a second way to parse down the financial markets. There are a variety of reasons for an upper level exec to drop shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would behave bullishly. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this strategy if you understand what to do (learn more here).
With all of this in mind, it’s important to take a look at the key action encompassing Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP).
What have hedge funds been doing with Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP)?
In preparation for this year, a total of 22 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -8% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ sentiment swirling, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes significantly.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Richard S. Pzena’s Pzena Investment Management had the most valuable position in Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP), worth close to $111 million, accounting for 0.9% of its total 13F portfolio. On Pzena Investment Management’s heels is Levin Capital Strategies, managed by John A. Levin, which held a $97 million position; the fund has 1.9% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedge funds with similar optimism include David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, Martin D. Sass’s MD Sass and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.
Seeing as Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) has witnessed bearish sentiment from the smart money, it’s safe to say that there is a sect of hedge funds who sold off their entire stakes at the end of the year. At the top of the heap, Mark Travis’s Intrepid Capital Management sold off the largest position of the “upper crust” of funds we monitor, comprising close to $15 million in stock.. Bart Baum’s fund, Ionic Capital Management, also sold off its call options., about $9 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds at the end of the year.
How have insiders been trading Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP)?
Insider buying is at its handiest when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest six-month time period, Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 5 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the results shown by Insider Monkey’s time-tested strategies, everyday investors must always watch hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE:TAP) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.
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