Should You Avoid Mattson Technology, Inc. (MTSN)?

Amid an overall market correction, many stocks that smart money investors were collectively bullish on tanked during the third quarter. Among them, Valeant and Micron ranked among the top 30 picks and both lost around 20%. Citigroup, which was the third most popular stock, lost 10% amid uncertainty regarding the interest rates. Nevertheless, our research shows that most of the stocks that smart money likes historically generate strong risk-adjusted returns. This is why following the smart money sentiment is a useful tool at identifying the next stock to invest in.

Is Mattson Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTSN) a buy, sell, or hold? The stock lost 18.18% of its value during the third quarter, and we discovered a similar sentiment among the hedge funds. The number of bullish hedge fund bets retreated by 9 recently. Considering the drop in hedge fund interest, we decided to take a sneak peek into the hedge funds holding Mattson Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTSN) in their portfolio.

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 FIRST FINANCIAL NORTHWEST, INC. (NASDAQ:FFNW), TESSCO Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:TESS), and Cidara Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:CDTX) to gather more data points.

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are a large number of indicators shareholders employ to appraise publicly traded companies. A pair of the most innovative indicators are hedge fund and insider trading moves. Our researchers have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the best money managers can outclass the market by a significant amount (see the details here).

Keeping this in mind, let’s take a glance at the recent action surrounding Mattson Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTSN).

What does the smart money think about Mattson Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTSN)?

Heading into Q4, a total of 8 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a drop of 53% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes significantly (or already accumulated large positions).

According to publicly available hedge fund and institutional investor holdings data compiled by Insider Monkey, Rima Senvest Management, managed by Richard Mashaal, holds the most valuable position in Mattson Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTSN). Rima Senvest Management has a $4.5 million position in the stock, comprising 0.3% of its 13F portfolio. The second most bullish fund manager is Royce & Associates, which holds a $4 million position; the fund has less than 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other peers that are bullish comprise Cliff Asness’ AQR Capital Management, Peter Keane’s Keane Capital Management, and D E Shaw.