Here is What Hedge Funds Think About Mednax Inc. (MD)

Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD) was in 14 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. MD shareholders have witnessed a decrease in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds in recent months. There were 16 hedge funds in our database with MD holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

To the average investor, there are plenty of methods market participants can use to monitor Mr. Market. A pair of the most under-the-radar 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 top money managers can outperform the S&P 500 by a healthy amount (see just how much).

Equally as important, optimistic insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the financial markets. Obviously, there are many stimuli for an executive to drop shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this tactic if investors understand where to look (learn more here).

With these “truths” under our belt, let’s take a glance at the recent action surrounding Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD).

What does the smart money think about Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD)?

At the end of the first quarter, a total of 14 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -13% from the first quarter. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings substantially.

When looking at the hedgies we track, Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, holds the largest position in Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD). Royce & Associates has a $94.6 million position in the stock, comprising 0.3% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Ken Griffin of Citadel Investment Group, with a $14.1 million position; the fund has less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that are bullish include Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management, D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.

Because Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD) has faced a declination in interest from the aggregate hedge fund industry, it’s easy to see that there were a few hedgies that elected to cut their entire stakes in Q1. At the top of the heap, Fred Knoll’s Knoll Capital Management sold off the biggest investment of all the hedgies we watch, comprising close to $131.8 million in stock.. Andreas Halvorsen’s fund, Viking Global, also said goodbye to its stock, about $4.8 million worth. These bearish behaviors are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds in Q1.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD)?

Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest half-year time period, Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and 9 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also review hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD). These stocks are Hanger Inc (NYSE:HGR), Acadia Healthcare Company Inc (NASDAQ:ACHC), DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc (NYSE:DVA), Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. (ADR) (NYSE:FMS), and HEALTHSOUTH Corp. (NYSE:HLS). This group of stocks are in the specialized health services industry and their market caps resemble MD’s market cap.

With the results demonstrated by the aforementioned studies, retail investors should always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Mednax Inc. (NYSE:MD) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.

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