Newpark Resources Inc (NR) Surges 9% After Upgrade: But Is It Really A ‘Strong Buy’?

What does the smart money think about Newpark Resources Inc (NYSE:NR)?

According to hedge fund experts at Insider Monkey, Israel Englander‘s Millennium Management had the largest position in Newpark Resources Inc (NYSE:NR), worth close to $28.8 million, consisting of about 3.16 million shares. Coming in second is Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, which held a $17.2 million position of about 1.89 million shares. Other members of the smart money with similar optimism contain Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Cliff Asness’ AQR Capital Management and Peter Muller’s PDT Partners.

As aggregate interest increased, some big names have jumped into Newpark Resources Inc (NYSE:NR) headfirst. As mentioned, PDT Partners, managed by Peter Muller, created the most valuable new position in Newpark Resources Inc (NYSE:NR). PDT Partners had $1.1 million invested in the company through ownership of 121,270 shares as of the end of the first quarter. Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies also held a $607,000 investment in the stock after the completion of the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors, David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, and David E. Shaw’s D.E. Shaw & Co., L.P.

With the very bullish sentiment by funds tracked by Insider Monkey as evidenced by the significant increase in total value of holdings, as well as the latest bullish call from analysts, Newpark Resources Inc (NYSE:NR) is looking good. We recommend a ‘Buy’, with the knowledge that volatility will continue to be present in the stock as commodity prices shift.

Disclosure: None