As aggregate interest increased, key hedge funds have jumped into BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) headfirst. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, assembled the most outsized position in BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP). Millennium Management had $117 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital also made an $64.7 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new BP investors: Peter Muller’s PDT Partners, David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, and John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors.
Let’s now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) but similarly valued. We will take a look at Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA), Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY), China Life Insurance Company Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:LFC), and Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT). This group of stocks’ market caps are closest to BP’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| MA | 76 | 6652043 | 1 |
| BMY | 62 | 2524973 | 14 |
| LFC | 9 | 103883 | -6 |
| MDT | 58 | 2051269 | -5 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 51.25 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $2,833 million. That figure was $968 million in BP’s case. Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand China Life Insurance Company Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:LFC) is the least popular one with only 9 bullish hedge fund positions. BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP) is not the least popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still below average. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard MA might be a better candidate to consider a long position.
