Tejon Ranch Company (TRC): Are Hedge Funds Right About This Stock?

Is Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC) a healthy stock for your portfolio? Investors who are in the know are turning bullish. The number of long hedge fund positions moved up by 1 in recent months.

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are tons of gauges investors can use to monitor their holdings. Two of the most useful are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best investment managers can outclass their index-focused peers by a very impressive amount (see just how much).

Equally as important, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to break down the investments you’re interested in. Just as you’d expect, there are plenty of incentives for an executive to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would behave bullishly. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if “monkeys” know where to look (learn more here).

Consequently, it’s important to take a peek at the recent action regarding Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC).

Hedge fund activity in Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC)

Heading into Q2, a total of 10 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 11% from one quarter earlier. With hedge funds’ capital changing hands, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings meaningfully.

Of the funds we track, Martin Whitman’s Third Avenue Management had the biggest position in Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC), worth close to $77 million, comprising 1.5% of its total 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is MFP Investors, managed by Michael Price, which held a $15.5 million position; 2% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Some other peers that are bullish include Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates, Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.

Consequently, key hedge funds have jumped into Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC) headfirst. Hilltop Park Associates, managed by Stanley Shopkorn and Douglas Day, established the largest position in Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC). Hilltop Park Associates had 0.6 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group also made a $0.2 million investment in the stock during the quarter.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC)?

Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is most useful when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last six-month time period, Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC) has seen 1 unique insiders buying, and 2 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

With the results shown by Insider Monkey’s strategies, everyday investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Tejon Ranch Company (NYSE:TRC) applies perfectly to this mantra.

Click here to learn why you should track hedge funds