Hedge Funds Are Selling TE Connectivity Ltd. (TEL)

TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL) was in 23 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. TEL investors should pay attention to a decrease in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds lately. There were 23 hedge funds in our database with TEL positions at the end of the previous quarter.

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are plenty of metrics shareholders can use to track stocks. A duo of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading movement. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the top investment managers can trounce the broader indices by a solid margin (see just how much).

Equally as integral, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are a variety of incentives for a bullish insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would buy. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this tactic if investors know what to do (learn more here).

With all of this in mind, it’s important to take a look at the latest action surrounding TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL).

Hedge fund activity in TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL)

In preparation for this quarter, a total of 23 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 0% from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully.

Of the funds we track, Pzena Investment Management, managed by Richard S. Pzena, holds the biggest position in TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL). Pzena Investment Management has a $456.6 million position in the stock, comprising 3.2% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Edgar Wachenheim of Greenhaven Associates, with a $191.9 million position; 5.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedge funds with similar optimism include Lou Simpson’s SQ Advisors, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group and Martin D. Sass’s MD Sass.

Because TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL) has witnessed falling interest from the aggregate hedge fund industry, logic holds that there was a specific group of fund managers who sold off their positions entirely at the end of the first quarter. It’s worth mentioning that Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital dropped the largest investment of the 450+ funds we monitor, worth close to $29.2 million in stock.. Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s fund, Arrowstreet Capital, also said goodbye to its stock, about $12.5 million worth. These moves are interesting, as total hedge fund interest stayed the same (this is a bearish signal in our experience).

What do corporate executives and insiders think about TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL)?

Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is particularly usable when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest six-month time frame, TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 12 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s go over hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL). These stocks are Molex Incorporated (NASDAQ:MOLX), LG Display Co Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:LPL), Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH), Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW), and Kyocera Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:KYO). All of these stocks are in the diversified electronics industry and their market caps match TEL’s market cap.