Between June 25 and October 30th the Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) lagged the larger S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by more than 14 percentage points as investors worried over the possible ramifications of rising interest rates. The hedge funds and institutional investors, we track typically invest more in smaller-cap stocks than an average investor, and we have seen data that shows those funds paring back their overall exposure. Those funds cutting positions in small-caps is one reason why volatility has increased. In the following paragraphs, we take a closer look at what hedge funds and prominent investors think of IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS) and see how the stock is affected by the recent hedge fund activity.
IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS) was in 32 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of September. IMS has seen an increase in hedge fund sentiment in recent months. There were 19 hedge funds in our database with IMS holdings at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article we will also compare IMS to other stocks, including Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (NASDAQ:MXIM), Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR), and Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS) to get a better sense of its popularity.
Follow Ims Health Holdings Inc. (NYSE:Q)
Follow Ims Health Holdings Inc. (NYSE:Q)
If you’d ask most stock holders, hedge funds are assumed to be underperforming, old financial vehicles of the past. While there are greater than 8000 funds trading at the moment, We choose to focus on the upper echelon of this club, around 700 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group of people shepherd the majority of the smart money’s total asset base, and by paying attention to their highest performing stock picks, Insider Monkey has formulated a number of investment strategies that have historically surpassed Mr. Market. Insider Monkey’s small-cap hedge fund strategy surpassed the S&P 500 index by 12 percentage points annually for a decade in their back tests.
With all of this in mind, we’re going to take a gander at the key action encompassing IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS).
What have hedge funds been doing with IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS)?
At the Q3’s end, a total of 32 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of 68% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes considerably (or already accumulated large positions).
When looking at the institutional investors followed by Insider Monkey, David Gallo’s Valinor Management LLC has the number one position in IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS), worth close to $159.2 million, corresponding to 4.2% of its total 13F portfolio. On Valinor Management LLC’s heels is Robert Pitts of Steadfast Capital Management, with a $113.2 million position; the fund has 2.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining professional money managers with similar optimism contain Robert Pohly’s Samlyn Capital, Ryan Pedlow’s Two Creeks Capital Management and James Crichton’s Hitchwood Capital Management.
As one would reasonably expect, specific money managers have been driving this bullishness. Incline Global Management, managed by Jeff Lignelli, created the biggest position in IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS). Incline Global Management had $19.5 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw also initiated a $18.6 million position during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Siddharth Thacker’s Signpost Capital, James Parsons’s Junto Capital Management, and Ben Levine, Andrew Manuel and Stefan Renold’s LMR Partners.
Let’s go over hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS). We will take a look at Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (NASDAQ:MXIM), Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR), Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS), and Cna Financial Corp (NYSE:CNA). All of these stocks’ market caps are similar to IMS’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| MXIM | 20 | 456056 | -3 |
| EXR | 16 | 227087 | 3 |
| CTAS | 27 | 1037662 | -1 |
| CNA | 11 | 34608 | 0 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 19 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $439 million. That figure was $831 million in IMS’s case. Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS) is the most popular stock in this table with 27 funds reporting stakes as of September 30. On the other hand, Cna Financial Corp (NYSE:CNA) is the least popular one. Compared to these stocks, IMS Health Holdings Inc (NYSE:IMS) 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.
