Here is What Hedge Funds Think About Thor Industries, Inc. (THO)

Hedge funds are not perfect. They have their bad picks just like everyone else. Micron, a stock hedge funds have loved, lost 50% during the last 12 months ending in October 30. Although hedge funds are not perfect, their consensus picks do deliver solid returns, however. Our data show the top 30 S&P 500 stocks among hedge funds at the end of September 2014 yielded an average return of 9.5% in the same time period, vs. a gain of 5.2% for the S&P 500 Index. Because hedge funds have a lot of resources and their consensus picks do well, we pay attention to what they think. In this article, we analyze what the elite funds think of Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO).

Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO) was in 21 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of the third quarter of 2015. THO has experienced an increase in hedge fund sentiment in recent months. There were 18 hedge funds in our database with THO positions at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article we will also compare THO to other stocks, including First Citizens BancShares Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA), Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM), and American Greetings Corporation (NYSE:AM) to get a better sense of its popularity.

If you’d ask most shareholders, hedge funds are perceived as slow, outdated investment vehicles of the past. While there are greater than 8000 funds trading at the moment, Our researchers hone in on the upper echelon of this club, around 700 funds. These money managers shepherd the majority of the smart money’s total asset base, and by observing their highest performing stock picks, Insider Monkey has brought to light many investment strategies that have historically outstripped the broader indices. Insider Monkey’s small-cap hedge fund strategy defeated the S&P 500 index by 12 percentage points per year for a decade in their back tests.

With all of this in mind, we’re going to take a gander at the recent action surrounding Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO).

What does the smart money think about Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO)?

Heading into Q4, a total of 21 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, up by 17% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes considerably (or already accumulated large positions).

Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates has the biggest position in Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO), worth close to $170.4 million, comprising 0.9% of its total 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Michael O’Keefe of 12th Street Asset Management, with a $15.9 million stake; the fund has 5.8% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedge funds and institutional investors that hold long positions contain Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.

Now, some big names were breaking ground themselves. Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, created the largest position in Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO), worth an estimated $9.4 million at the end of the quarter. Josh Goldberg’s G2 Investment Partners Management also initiated a $1.3 million position during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new THO investors: John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors, Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital, and Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates.

Let’s now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO) but similarly valued. We will take a look at First Citizens BancShares Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA), Piedmont Office Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:PDM), American Greetings Corporation (NYSE:AM), and Associated Banc Corp (NYSE:ASB). This group of stocks’ market values match THO’s market value.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 8 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $105 million. Associated Banc Corp (NYSE:ASB) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand American Greetings Corporation (NYSE:AM) is the least popular one with only 5 bullish hedge fund positions. Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE:THO) is clearly the most popular stock from this group, having the upper hand in both the number of funds with long positions and the amount invested, which is estimated at $233 million. Considering that hedge funds are fond of this stock in relation to its market cap peers, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and potentially include it in your portfolio.