Is Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) a buy here? The smart money is betting on the stock. The number of long hedge fund bets went up by 1 lately.
If you’d ask most shareholders, hedge funds are viewed as slow, old financial vehicles of the past. While there are over 8000 funds in operation at present, we choose to focus on the masters of this club, around 450 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group oversees most of the hedge fund industry’s total asset base, and by paying attention to their best investments, we have formulated a number of investment strategies that have historically outpaced the S&P 500 index. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve started sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have topped the S&P 500 index by 25 percentage points in 6.5 month (see the details here).
With these “truths” under our belt, it’s important to take a gander at the latest action regarding Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD).
Hedge fund activity in Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD)
At year’s end, a total of 20 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 5% from the third quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings significantly.
According to our comprehensive database, Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, holds the most valuable position in Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD). Citadel Investment Group has a $64 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. On Citadel Investment Group’s heels is Amy Minella of Cardinal Capital, with a $24 million position; the fund has 1.6% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedgies that are bullish include Glenn J. Krevlin’s Glenhill Advisors, D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.
As industrywide interest jumped, key hedge funds have jumped into Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) headfirst. Two Sigma Advisors, managed by John Overdeck and David Siegel, assembled the most valuable position in Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD). Two Sigma Advisors had 1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. John Fichthorn’s Dialectic Capital Management also made a $1 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Jacob Gottlieb’s Visium Asset Management and Bruce Kovner’s Caxton Associates LP.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD)?
Bullish insider trading is best served when the company in question has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the last six-month time period, Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) has experienced 1 unique insiders buying, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the results shown by Insider Monkey’s strategies, everyday investors should always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Starwood Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:STWD) is an important part of this process.
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