Oplink Communications, Inc (OPLK): Insiders Aren’t Crazy About It

Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK) was in 8 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. OPLK shareholders have witnessed a decrease in enthusiasm from smart money lately. There were 11 hedge funds in our database with OPLK holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

To the average investor, there are tons of gauges investors can use to track Mr. Market. Two of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top investment managers can outperform the market by a solid margin (see just how much).

Just as integral, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to break down the world of equities. Obviously, there are a number of reasons for an upper level exec to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would initiate a purchase. Many academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this strategy if investors understand where to look (learn more here).

With all of this in mind, it’s important to take a look at the recent action regarding Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK).

What does the smart money think about Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK)?

At Q1’s end, a total of 8 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of -27% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a few notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings considerably.

Of the funds we track, Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates had the largest position in Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK), worth close to $14.5 million, accounting for less than 0.1%% of its total 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Jim Simons of Renaissance Technologies, with a $2.1 million position; the fund has less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other peers that are bullish include Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management, John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors and Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital.

Because Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK) has witnessed falling interest from hedge fund managers, it’s easy to see that there were a few fund managers who sold off their full holdings last quarter. At the top of the heap, Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management dumped the biggest stake of all the hedgies we watch, comprising an estimated $1.6 million in stock.. D. E. Shaw’s fund, D E Shaw, also dumped its stock, about $0.4 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as aggregate hedge fund interest fell by 3 funds last quarter.

How have insiders been trading Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK)?

Insider buying is particularly usable when the primary stock in question has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last six-month time period, Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero 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 Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK). These stocks are Volterra Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:VLTR), Yingli Green Energy Hold. Co. Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:YGE), Audience Inc (NASDAQ:ADNC), ParkerVision, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRKR), and Peregrine Semiconductor Corp (NASDAQ:PSMI). All of these stocks are in the semiconductor – integrated circuits industry and their market caps are similar to OPLK’s market cap.

With the results shown by the aforementioned tactics, everyday investors must always monitor hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Oplink Communications, Inc (NASDAQ:OPLK) is an important part of this process.

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