Is it smart to be bullish on The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)?
In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are many methods investors can use to monitor their holdings. A couple of the best are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a healthy amount (see just how much).
Equally as crucial, positive insider trading activity is another way to look at the financial markets. Obviously, there are lots of motivations for an executive to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if piggybackers understand where to look (learn more here).
Furthermore, let’s analyze the newest info surrounding The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE).
Hedge fund activity in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)
At the end of the second quarter, a total of 6 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of -25% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings considerably.
Out of the hedge funds we follow, Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, holds the most valuable position in The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE). Royce & Associates has a $384.5 million position in the stock, comprising 1.2% of its 13F portfolio. On Royce & Associates’s heels is Gotham Asset Management, managed by Joel Greenblatt, which held a $7.7 million position; the fund has 0.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers that hold long positions include Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management, and Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group.
Due to the fact The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) has witnessed declining interest from the top-tier hedge fund industry, it’s easy to see that there lies a certain “tier” of hedgies who were dropping their full holdings last quarter. At the top of the heap, Neil Chriss’s Hutchin Hill Capital cut the largest position of the “upper crust” of funds we monitor, totaling close to $2.8 million in stock. Matthew Hulsizer’s fund, PEAK6 Capital Management, also cut its stock, about $1.8 million worth. These bearish behaviors are intriguing to say the least, as total hedge fund interest fell by 2 funds last quarter.
What have insiders been doing with The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE)?
Insider buying made by high-level executives is most useful when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last half-year time frame, The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
We’ll check out the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE). These stocks are The Men’s Wearhouse, Inc. (NYSE:MW), Ascena Retail Group Inc (NASDAQ:ASNA), DSW Inc. (NYSE:DSW), Chico’s FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS), and Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES). This group of stocks are the members of the apparel stores industry and their market caps are similar to BKE’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| The Men’s Wearhouse, Inc. (NYSE:MW) | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Ascena Retail Group Inc (NASDAQ:ASNA) | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| DSW Inc. (NYSE:DSW) | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| Chico’s FAS, Inc. (NYSE:CHS) | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES) | 10 | 0 | 0 |
Using the results shown by our research, average investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE:BKE) is an important part of this process.
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