We at Insider Monkey have gone over 700 13F filings that hedge funds and prominent investors are required to file by the government. The 13F filings show the funds’ and investors’ portfolio positions as of September 30. In this article we look at what those investors think of Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX).
Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) was in 5 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of the third quarter of 2015. Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) shareholders have witnessed a decrease in support from the world’s most elite money managers recently. There were 7 hedge funds in our database with Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) positions at the end of the previous quarter. The investors who are in the know will not be surprised by the drop in hedge fund interest, as the shares of the company were down 62.97% throughout the quarter. However, the hedge fund interest cannot be accredited to the stock’s trading performance, and we will cover hedge funds that held a position in Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) at the end of the last quarter.
The level and the change in hedge fund popularity aren’t the only variables you need to analyze to decipher hedge funds’ perspectives. A stock may witness a boost in popularity, but it may still be less popular than similarly priced stocks. That’s why at the end of this article we will examine companies such as Entegra Financial Corp (NASDAQ:ENFC), Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE), and RedHill Biopharma Ltd – ADR (NASDAQ:RDHL) to gather more data points.
Follow Rex Energy Corp (NASDAQ:REXX)
Follow Rex Energy Corp (NASDAQ:REXX)
If you’d ask most investors, hedge funds are viewed as slow, outdated investment tools of years past. While there are over 8000 funds with their doors open at present, our experts hone in on the upper echelon of this group, about 700 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group of people direct bulk of all hedge funds’ total asset base, and by paying attention to their finest picks, Insider Monkey has determined various investment strategies that have historically outstripped the market. Insider Monkey’s small-cap hedge fund strategy outrun the S&P 500 index by 12 percentage points per annum for a decade in their back tests.
With all of this in mind, we’re going to view the key action regarding Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX).
How have hedgies been trading Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX)?
Atthe end of Q3, a total of 5 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a decline of 29% from the second quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully (or already accumulated large positions).
According to publicly available hedge fund and institutional investor holdings data compiled by Insider Monkey, D E Shaw holds the most valuable position in Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX). D E Shaw has a $1.3 million position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. On D E Shaw’s heels is Gregory Fraser, Rudolph Kluiber, and Timothy Krochuk of GRT Capital Partners, with a $1 million position; 0.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other professional money managers that are bullish include Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, and Paul Tudor Jones’s Tudor Investment Corp.
Due to the fact that Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) has witnessed a declining sentiment from the smart money, logic holds that there was a specific group of fund managers that elected to cut their full holdings heading into Q4. Intriguingly, Zac Hirzel’s Hirzel Capital Management said goodbye to the largest investment of the 700 funds watched by Insider Monkey, valued at close to $29.2 million in stock. Renaissance Technologies also cut its stock, about $1 million worth of shares. These moves are important to note, as total hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds heading into Q4.
Let’s also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) but similarly valued. We will take a look at Entegra Financial Corp (NASDAQ:ENFC), Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE), RedHill Biopharma Ltd – ADR (NASDAQ:RDHL), and Capstone Turbine Corporation (NASDAQ:CPST). This group of stocks’ market caps match Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX)’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENFC | 4 | 13419 | -1 |
| LEE | 13 | 21616 | 0 |
| RDHL | 5 | 26881 | 2 |
| CPST | 7 | 4642 | -2 |
As you can see, these stocks had an average of 7 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $17 million. That figure was $3 million in Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX)’s case. Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand, Entegra Financial Corp (NASDAQ:ENFC) is the least popular one with only 4 bullish hedge fund positions. Rex Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:REXX) 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, Lee Enterprises, Incorporated (NYSE:LEE) might be a better candidate to consider a long position.
