Here is What Hedge Funds Think About Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG) – Palmetto Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:PLMT), Greenhill & Co., Inc. (NYSE:GHL)

Is Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG) a buy here? The best stock pickers are in a bullish mood. The number of bullish hedge fund positions moved up by 5 in recent months.

At the moment, there are tons of metrics investors can use to track the equity markets. A duo of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading movement. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top hedge fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a significant amount (see just how much).

Just as integral, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to break down the stock market universe. Just as you’d expect, there are many reasons for a bullish insider to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would buy. Various academic studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if investors understand what to do (learn more here).

Consequently, it’s important to take a glance at the key action regarding Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG).

How have hedgies been trading Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG)?

Heading into 2013, a total of 11 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 83% from the third quarter. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes meaningfully.

According to our comprehensive database, Martin Whitman’s Third Avenue Management had the biggest position in Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG), worth close to $9 million, accounting for 0.2% of its total 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is AQR Capital Management, managed by Cliff Asness, which held a $9 million position; the fund has 0% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedge funds that are bullish include Anil Stevens and Glenn Shapiro’s Parameter Capital Management, Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.

Now, key money managers were breaking ground themselves. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, assembled the biggest position in Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG). Millennium Management had 3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Brian Taylor’s Pine River Capital Management also initiated a $2 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Bruce Kovner’s Caxton Associates LP, and Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG)?

Insider buying is particularly usable when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 2 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also review hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG). These stocks are Greenhill & Co., Inc. (NYSE:GHL), Palmetto Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:PLMT), SWS Group, Inc. (NYSE:SWS), Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. (USA) (NYSE:OPY), and Knight Capital Group Inc. (NYSE:KCG). This group of stocks are the members of the investment brokerage – regional industry and their market caps are similar to ITG’s market cap.

With the results shown by our tactics, everyday investors must always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Investment Technology Group (NYSE:ITG) is an important part of this process.