Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (HITK): Hedge Funds Aren’t Crazy About It, Insider Sentiment Unchanged

Should Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK) investors track the following data?

To the average investor, there are tons of gauges investors can use to monitor stocks. A duo of the best are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the top fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a superb amount (see just how much).

Equally as crucial, bullish insider trading activity is a second way to look at the stock market universe. Obviously, there are a variety of reasons for a bullish insider to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various academic studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if you know where to look (learn more here).

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s discuss the recent info for Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK).

How have hedgies been trading Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK)?

At the end of the second quarter, a total of 9 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -10% from the first quarter. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings substantially.

Out of the hedge funds we follow, Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, holds the most valuable position in Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK). Royce & Associates has a $56 million position in the stock, comprising 0.2% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by OrbiMed Advisors, managed by Samuel Isaly, which held a $12.3 million position; the fund has 0.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Kevin Kotler’s Broadfin Capital, Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management and John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors.

Due to the fact Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK) has faced a fall in interest from the smart money’s best and brightest, logic holds that there is a sect of hedge funds that decided to sell off their positions entirely last quarter. Interestingly, Mark Kingdon’s Kingdon Capital cut the largest stake of the 450+ funds we key on, totaling close to $3.5 million in stock. D. E. Shaw’s fund, D E Shaw, also dropped its stock, about $0.2 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as total hedge fund interest dropped by 1 funds last quarter.

What have insiders been doing with Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK)?

Insider buying is most useful when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time period, Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll also review the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK). These stocks are Supernus Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:SUPN), Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:MNTA), Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:LGND), Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVNR), and Sagent Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:SGNT). This group of stocks belong to the drugs – generic industry and their market caps are closest to HITK’s market cap.

Using the results demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s research, regular investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co. (NASDAQ:HITK) applies perfectly to this mantra.

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