A whopping number of 13F filings filed with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has been processed by Insider Monkey so that individual investors can look at the overall hedge fund sentiment towards the stocks included in their watchlists. These freshly-submitted public filings disclose money managers’ equity positions as of the end of the three-month period that ended September 30, so let’s proceed with the discussion of the hedge fund sentiment on Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG).
Hedge fund interest in Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG) shares was flat at the end of last quarter. This is usually a negative indicator. At the end of this article we will also compare BBRG to other stocks, including VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ:VVUS), Marchex, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCHX), and Ballard Power Systems Inc. (USA) (NASDAQ:BLDP) to get a better sense of its popularity.
Follow Bravo Brio Restaurant Group Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG)
Follow Bravo Brio Restaurant Group Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG)
According to most stock holders, hedge funds are assumed to be worthless, old financial tools of the past. While there are over an 8000 funds trading at the moment. Our experts look at the top tier of this group, around 700 funds. It is estimated that this group of investors oversee most of the smart money’s total asset base, and by monitoring their matchless investments, Insider Monkey has figured out numerous investment strategies that have historically beaten Mr. Market. Insider Monkey’s small-cap hedge fund strategy exceeded the S&P 500 index by 12 percentage points per year for a decade in their back tests.
With all of this in mind, we’re going to take a glance at the fresh action surrounding Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG).
What have hedge funds been doing with Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 16 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, unchanged from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes substantially (or already accumulated large positions).
Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, George McCabe’s Portolan Capital Management has the largest position in Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG), worth close to $4.4 million, comprising 0.6% of its total 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Lafitte Capital Management, led by Bryant Regan, holding a $1.8 million position; 1.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other professional money managers that are bullish include Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.
We view hedge fund activity in the stock unfavorable, but in this case there was only a single hedge fund selling its entire position: Scopus Asset Management. One hedge fund selling its entire position doesn’t always imply a bearish intent. Theoretically a hedge fund may decide to sell a promising position in order to invest the proceeds in a more promising idea. However, we don’t think this is the case in this case because only one of the 700+ hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey identified as a viable investment and initiated a position in the stock (that fund was Algert Coldiron Investors).
Let’s now review hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG). We will take a look at VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ:VVUS), Marchex, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCHX), Ballard Power Systems Inc. (USA) (NASDAQ:BLDP), and Red Lion Hotels Corporation (NYSE:RLH). This group of stocks’ market values are similar to BBRG’s market value.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| VVUS | 11 | 27840 | 0 |
| MCHX | 11 | 21879 | -2 |
| BLDP | 4 | 568 | 1 |
| RLH | 5 | 10039 | -1 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 8 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $15 million, versus $18 million in BBRG’s case. VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ:VVUS) is the most popular stock in this table with 11 funds reporting stakes. On the other hand, Ballard Power Systems Inc. (USA) (NASDAQ:BLDP) is the least popular one. Compared to these stocks, Bravo Brio Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBRG) is more popular among hedge funds. Considering that hedge funds are fond of this stock in relation to its market cap peers, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and potentially include it in your portfolio.
