Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT) was in 9 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. SKT shareholders have witnessed a decrease in support from the world’s most elite money managers lately. There were 13 hedge funds in our database with SKT positions at the end of the previous quarter.
To most market participants, hedge funds are assumed to be underperforming, outdated financial vehicles of the past. While there are greater than 8000 funds with their doors open at the moment, we at Insider Monkey choose to focus on the upper echelon of this group, around 450 funds. It is widely believed that this group oversees the majority of the smart money’s total asset base, and by paying attention to their highest performing investments, we have determined a number of investment strategies that have historically outperformed Mr. Market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy beat the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have outpaced the S&P 500 index by 24 percentage points in 7 months (explore the details and some picks here).
Just as beneficial, positive insider trading activity is a second way to parse down the stock market universe. Just as you’d expect, there are a number of incentives for an insider to get rid of shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if investors know where to look (learn more here).
Now, we’re going to take a gander at the latest action regarding Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT).
How have hedgies been trading Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT)?
At year’s end, a total of 9 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of -31% from the third quarter. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes substantially.
According to our comprehensive database, Ken Heebner’s Capital Growth Management had the most valuable position in Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT), worth close to $46.3 million, accounting for 1.2% of its total 13F portfolio. On Capital Growth Management’s heels is Andrew Sandler of Sandler Capital Management, with a $31.1 million position; the fund has 1.6% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedgies that hold long positions include Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.
Judging by the fact that Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT) has experienced declining sentiment from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, we can see that there were a few money managers who were dropping their positions entirely heading into 2013. At the top of the heap, Ken Gray and Steve Walsh’s Bryn Mawr Capital cut the biggest stake of the 450+ funds we monitor, valued at close to $4 million in stock., and D. E. Shaw of D E Shaw was right behind this move, as the fund sold off about $1.4 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest was cut by 4 funds heading into 2013.
What have insiders been doing with Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last half-year time frame, Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT) has seen 1 unique insiders purchasing, and 7 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s go over hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT). These stocks are EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR), Equity One, Inc. (NYSE:EQY), Weingarten Realty Investors (NYSE:WRI), CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. (NYSE:CBL), and Hospitality Properties Trust (NYSE:HPT). This group of stocks belong to the reit – retail industry and their market caps match SKT’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) | 9 | 0 | 3 |
| Equity One, Inc. (NYSE:EQY) | 6 | 1 | 4 |
| Weingarten Realty Investors (NYSE:WRI) | 12 | 0 | 1 |
| CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. (NYSE:CBL) | 9 | 3 | 3 |
| Hospitality Properties Trust (NYSE:HPT) | 9 | 1 | 1 |
With the results shown by Insider Monkey’s time-tested strategies, everyday investors must always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. (NYSE:SKT) is an important part of this process.
