Molex Incorporated (MOLX), Corning Incorporated (GLW): Here is What Hedge Funds Think About Amphenol Corporation (APH)

Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH) was in 16 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. APH has experienced a decrease in hedge fund interest of late. There were 18 hedge funds in our database with APH holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

In the financial world, there are many metrics market participants can use to analyze Mr. Market. A duo of the most innovative 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 best money managers can outpace the market by a solid amount (see just how much).

Equally as key, positive insider trading activity is a second way to parse down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are many motivations for an executive to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if shareholders know where to look (learn more here).

Now, we’re going to take a look at the recent action surrounding Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH).

How are hedge funds trading Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH)?

Heading into 2013, a total of 16 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -11% from the third quarter. With hedge funds’ sentiment swirling, there exists an “upper tier” of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes significantly.

When looking at the hedgies we track, First Eagle Investment Management, managed by Jean-Marie Eveillard, holds the biggest position in Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH). First Eagle Investment Management has a $167.5 million position in the stock, comprising 0.6% of its 13F portfolio. On First Eagle Investment Management’s heels is Robert Joseph Caruso of Select Equity Group, with a $143.4 million position; the fund has 2.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedge funds with similar optimism include Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Edward Goodnow’s Goodnow Investment Group and Richard Chilton’s Chilton Investment Company.

Because Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH) has experienced bearish sentiment from the aggregate hedge fund industry, we can see that there is a sect of funds that decided to sell off their entire stakes at the end of the year. Intriguingly, Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies sold off the biggest position of the 450+ funds we key on, valued at close to $1 million in stock.. D. E. Shaw’s fund, D E Shaw, also dumped its stock, about $0.8 million worth. These transactions are intriguing to say the least, as total hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds at the end of the year.

Insider trading activity in Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH)

Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is particularly usable when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and 13 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also take a look at hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH). These stocks are Molex Incorporated (NASDAQ:MOLX), Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW), TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL), Kyocera Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:KYO), and LG Display Co Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:LPL). This group of stocks are in the diversified electronics industry and their market caps resemble APH’s market cap.

With the results shown by our studies, everyday investors should always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Amphenol Corporation (NYSE:APH) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.

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