Here is What Hedge Funds Think About Total System Services, Inc. (TSS)

In today’s marketplace, there are dozens of metrics shareholders can use to watch publicly traded companies. A pair of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the elite hedge fund managers can outclass their index-focused peers by a solid margin (see just how much).

Just as key, bullish insider trading activity is another way to look at the financial markets. Obviously, there are lots of incentives for an insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Many academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if “monkeys” understand where to look (learn more here).

Thus, we’re going to analyze the latest info for Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS).

Hedge fund activity in Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS)

At the end of the second quarter, a total of 21 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 31% from the first quarter. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes meaningfully.

According to our 13F database, Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, holds the largest position in Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS). Renaissance Technologies has a $111.7 million position in the stock, comprising 0.3% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, which held a $104.7 million position; 0.2% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management and David Harding’s Winton Capital Management.

As one would understandably expect, particular hedge funds were breaking ground themselves. Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, initiated the biggest position in Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS). Renaissance Technologies had 111.7 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group also initiated a $104.7 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management, and David Harding’s Winton Capital Management.

How have insiders been trading Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS)?

Legal insider trading, particularly when it’s bullish, is at its handiest when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest six-month time frame, Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll also take a look at the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Total System Services, Inc. (NYSE:TSS). These stocks are Amdocs Limited (NYSE:DOX), NetSuite Inc (NYSE:N), Informatica Corporation (NASDAQ:INFA), Jack Henry & Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:JKHY), and Solera Holdings Inc (NYSE:SLH). This group of stocks are the members of the business software & services industry and their market caps match TSS’s market cap.