To most stock holders, hedge funds are viewed as unimportant, outdated investment vehicles of yesteryear. While there are more than 8000 funds with their doors open today, we at Insider Monkey hone in on the elite of this group, close to 450 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group has its hands on most of the smart money’s total asset base, and by paying attention to their top stock picks, we have discovered a few investment strategies that have historically outperformed the S&P 500 index. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outpaced the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have trumped the S&P 500 index by 24 percentage points in 7 months (explore the details and some picks here).
Just as beneficial, positive insider trading activity is a second way to break down the marketplace. As the old adage goes: there are many motivations for a bullish insider to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would behave bullishly. Various academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this strategy if shareholders know what to do (learn more here).
Consequently, it’s important to take a gander at the recent action surrounding UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH).
How are hedge funds trading UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH)?
At the end of the fourth quarter, a total of 5 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 25% from the third quarter. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists an “upper tier” of key hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes meaningfully.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Forward Management, managed by J. Alan Reid, Jr., holds the most valuable position in UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH). Forward Management has a $17.6 million position in the stock, comprising 1.2% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by ACK Asset Management, managed by “Richard S. Meisenberg, which held a $4 million position; the fund has 1.9% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers that hold long positions include Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.
Now, some big names were leading the bulls’ herd. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, created the most valuable position in UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH). Millennium Management had 0.2 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH)?
Insider buying is most useful when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time period, UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH) has seen 3 unique insiders purchasing, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE:UMH). These stocks are Whitestone REIT (NYSE:WSR), Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ABR), Gladstone Commercial Corporation (NASDAQ:GOOD), Javelin Mortgage Investment Corp (NYSE:JMI), and Ares Commercial Real Estate Corp (NYSE:ACRE). All of these stocks are in the reit – diversified industry and their market caps are closest to UMH’s market cap.
