After several tireless days we have finished crunching the numbers from the more than 700 13F filings issued by the elite hedge funds and other investment firms that we track at Insider Monkey, which disclosed those firms’ equity portfolios as of September 30. The results of that effort will be put on display in this article, as we share valuable insight into the smart money sentiment towards Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ).
Is Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ) the right pick for your portfolio? Investors who are in the know are becoming hopeful. The number of long hedge fund bets moved up by 1 in recent months. Our calculations also showed that htz isn’t among the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds.
Hedge funds’ reputation as shrewd investors has been tarnished in the last decade as their hedged returns couldn’t keep up with the unhedged returns of the market indices. Our research has shown that hedge funds’ large-cap stock picks indeed failed to beat the market between 1999 and 2016. However, we were able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that outperformed the market by 18 percentage points since May 2014 through December 3, 2018 (see the details here). We were also able to identify in advance a select group of hedge fund holdings that’ll significantly underperform the market. We have been tracking and sharing the list of these stocks since February 2017 and they lost 24% through December 3, 2018. That’s why we believe hedge fund sentiment is an extremely useful indicator that investors should pay attention to.
Let’s take a gander at the new hedge fund action surrounding Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ).
How are hedge funds trading Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 26 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a change of 4% from the previous quarter. Below, you can check out the change in hedge fund sentiment towards HTZ over the last 13 quarters. So, let’s find out which hedge funds were among the top holders of the stock and which hedge funds were making big moves.
Among these funds, Icahn Capital LP held the most valuable stake in Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ), which was worth $477.9 million at the end of the third quarter. On the second spot was GAMCO Investors which amassed $97.3 million worth of shares. Moreover, PAR Capital Management, Glenview Capital, and D E Shaw were also bullish on Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ), allocating a large percentage of their portfolios to this stock.
As aggregate interest increased, some big names were breaking ground themselves. Balyasny Asset Management, managed by Dmitry Balyasny, assembled the most valuable position in Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ). Balyasny Asset Management had $6.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Lee Ainslie’s Maverick Capital also initiated a $3.1 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new HTZ positions are Mike Vranos’s Ellington and Frederick DiSanto’s Ancora Advisors.
Let’s also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ) but similarly valued. These stocks are Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY), Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE:RAD), Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT), and Tennant Company (NYSE:TNC). This group of stocks’ market valuations are closest to HTZ’s market valuation.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| KRNY | 17 | 193834 | -2 |
| RAD | 18 | 63364 | 1 |
| SAFT | 11 | 43239 | 2 |
| TNC | 11 | 98956 | 5 |
| Average | 14.25 | 99848 | 1.5 |
View table here if you experience formatting issues.
As you can see these stocks had an average of 14.25 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $100 million. That figure was $962 million in HTZ’s case. Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE:RAD) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) is the least popular one with only 11 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HTZ) is more popular among hedge funds. 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.
Disclosure: None. This article was originally published at Insider Monkey.
