PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) was in 16 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. PPL investors should pay attention to a decrease in support from the world’s most elite money managers of late. There were 19 hedge funds in our database with PPL positions at the end of the previous quarter.
In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are many gauges investors can use to track publicly traded companies. A pair of the most underrated are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite hedge fund managers can trounce the market by a superb margin (see just how much).
Just as important, optimistic insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are lots of incentives for a bullish insider to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Several academic studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if “monkeys” understand what to do (learn more here).
Now, let’s take a peek at the latest action encompassing PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL).
What have hedge funds been doing with PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)?
Heading into 2013, a total of 16 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of -16% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ sentiment swirling, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings significantly.
According to our comprehensive database, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management had the biggest position in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL), worth close to $62 million, comprising 0.4% of its total 13F portfolio. On Millennium Management’s heels is Glenn Russell Dubin of Highbridge Capital Management, with a $23 million position; 0.4% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other hedge funds with similar optimism include Michael Messner’s Seminole Capital (Investment Mgmt), D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw and Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management.
Seeing as PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) has faced a declination in interest from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, it’s easy to see that there were a few fund managers that elected to cut their positions entirely at the end of the year. Intriguingly, Clint Carlson’s Carlson Capital said goodbye to the biggest stake of the 450+ funds we monitor, valued at close to $32 million in stock.. William Michaelcheck’s fund, Mariner Investment Group, also sold off its stock, about $5 million worth. These moves are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest was cut by 3 funds at the end of the year.
What have insiders been doing with PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)?
Insider buying is best served when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time period, PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 6 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the results shown by the aforementioned tactics, retail investors must always watch hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) is no exception.
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