What’s a smart Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) investor to do?
In the financial world, there are many methods investors can use to track stocks. A duo of the best are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite fund managers can outclass the broader indices by a very impressive margin (see just how much).
Equally as useful, bullish insider trading activity is another way to analyze the financial markets. Obviously, there are a number of motivations for a corporate insider to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would buy. Various academic studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this method if shareholders know what to do (learn more here).
Furthermore, let’s examine the newest info about Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL).
What does the smart money think about Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL)?
Heading into Q3, a total of 23 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 15% from the first quarter. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes considerably.
Out of the hedge funds we follow, Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, holds the largest position in Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL). Millennium Management has a $20.1 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Legg Mason Capital Management, managed by Bill Miller, which held a $19.9 million position; the fund has 0.4% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedgies that are bullish include Bruce Kovner’s Caxton Associates LP, John Brennan’s Sirios Capital Management and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.
As industrywide interest increased, certain money managers have jumped into Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) headfirst. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, created the most valuable position in Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL). Millennium Management had 20.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Bill Miller’s Legg Mason Capital Management also initiated a $19.9 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new ODFL positions are Bruce Kovner’s Caxton Associates LP, John Brennan’s Sirios Capital Management, and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.
Insider trading activity in Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL)
Bullish insider trading is best served when the primary stock in question has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the last six-month time frame, Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
We’ll check out the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL). These stocks are Knight Transportation (NYSE:KNX), Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN), Con-way Inc (NYSE:CNW), Swift Transportation Co (NYSE:SWFT), and Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR). This group of stocks are in the trucking industry and their market caps are similar to ODFL’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Knight Transportation (NYSE:KNX) | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Con-way Inc (NYSE:CNW) | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| Swift Transportation Co (NYSE:SWFT) | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR) | 12 | 0 | 0 |
Using the returns explained by Insider Monkey’s analyses, regular investors should always keep one eye on hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) is no exception.
