This Metric Says You Are Smart to Buy Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ)

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) was in 6 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. CSIQ has seen an increase in hedge fund sentiment of late. There were 5 hedge funds in our database with CSIQ positions at the end of the previous quarter.

At the moment, there are many metrics shareholders can use to watch their holdings. A pair of the best are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the elite fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a superb margin (see just how much).

Just as important, positive insider trading activity is another way to break down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are a variety of reasons for an executive to get rid of shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this method if “monkeys” know what to do (learn more here).

With all of this in mind, it’s important to take a gander at the key action regarding Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ).

How are hedge funds trading Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ)?

At year’s end, a total of 6 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 20% from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes substantially.

According to our comprehensive database, Shah Capital Management, managed by Himanshu H. Shah, holds the most valuable position in Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ). Shah Capital Management has a $2.4 million position in the stock, comprising 2.4% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by John Hurley of Cavalry Asset Management, with a $1.2 million position; the fund has 0.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Andrew R. Midler’s Savitr Capital, D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw and Daniel S. Och’s OZ Management.

As aggregate interest increased, key hedge funds were breaking ground themselves. Savitr Capital, managed by Andrew R. Midler, created the largest position in Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ). Savitr Capital had 1.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter.

How are insiders trading Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ)?

Insider buying is particularly usable when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last six-month time period, Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also take a look at hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ). These stocks are MaxLinear, Inc. (NYSE:MXL), Ultra Clean Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:UCTT), Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (ADR) (NASDAQ:ACTS), Sigma Designs Inc (NASDAQ:SIGM), and Rubicon Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:RBCN). This group of stocks are the members of the semiconductor – specialized industry and their market caps resemble CSIQ’s market cap.

With the returns demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s research, retail investors should always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) is no exception.

Click here to learn why you should track hedge funds