The market has been volatile as the Federal Reserve winds down its easy money policies. Small cap stocks have been hit hard as a result, as the Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) has underperformed the larger S&P 500 ETF (SPY) by more than 14 percentage points between June 25th and the end of October. SEC filings and hedge fund investor letters indicate that the smart money seems to be paring back their overall long exposure, and the funds’ movements is one of the reasons why the major indexes have retraced. In this article, we analyze what the smart money thinks of VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX) and find out how it is affected by hedge funds’ moves.
VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX) has experienced an increase in enthusiasm from smart money in recent months. The level and the change in hedge fund popularity aren’t the only variables you need to analyze to decipher hedge funds’ perspectives. A stock may witness a boost in popularity but it may still be less popular than similarly priced stocks. That’s why at the end of this article we will examine companies such as HC2 Holdings Inc (NYSEMKT:HCHC), Alpha and Omega Semiconductor Ltd (NASDAQ:AOSL), and Graham Corporation (NYSEAMEX:GHM) to gather more data points.
Follow Voxx International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX)
Follow Voxx International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX)
If you’d ask most market participants, hedge funds are viewed as underperforming, outdated investment tools of yesteryear. While there are more than 8000 funds in operation at the moment, Our researchers hone in on the aristocrats of this club, approximately 700 funds. These money managers shepherd the majority of all hedge funds’ total capital, and by shadowing their first-class investments, Insider Monkey has unsheathed numerous investment strategies that have historically exceeded the S&P 500 index. Insider Monkey’s small-cap hedge fund strategy beat the S&P 500 index by 12 percentage points annually for a decade in their back tests.
With all of this in mind, we’re going to view the latest action encompassing VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX).
What does the smart money think about VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 9 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a change of 13% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully (or already accumulated large positions).
According to publicly available hedge fund and institutional investor holdings data compiled by Insider Monkey, Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, holds the most valuable position in VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX). Royce & Associates has a $7.3 million position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by D E Shaw, led by D. E. Shaw, holding a $0.3 million position; less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other peers with similar optimism include John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors, Gavin Saitowitz and Cisco J. del Valle’s Springbok Capital and Matthew Hulsizer’s PEAK6 Capital Management.
With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, some big names were breaking ground themselves. Nine Chapters Capital Management, managed by Chao Ku, established a position in VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX). Nine Chapters Capital Management had $0.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Glenn Russell Dubin’s Highbridge Capital Management also made a $0.1 million investment in the stock during the quarter.
Let’s now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX). We will take a look at HC2 Holdings Inc (NYSEMKT:HCHC), Alpha and Omega Semiconductor Ltd (NASDAQ:AOSL), Graham Corporation (NYSEAMEX:GHM), and T2 Biosystems Inc (NASDAQ:TTOO). This group of stocks’ market caps resemble VOXX’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| HCHC | 8 | 46572 | -2 |
| AOSL | 7 | 25392 | 0 |
| GHM | 10 | 32180 | 0 |
| TTOO | 7 | 34965 | -3 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 8 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $35 million. That figure was $21 million in VOXX’s case. Graham Corporation (NYSEAMEX:GHM) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Alpha and Omega Semiconductor Ltd (NASDAQ:AOSL) is the least popular one with only 7 bullish hedge fund positions. VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX) is not the most popular stock in this group, but it has attracted attention from investors. Although this may imply it is a good stock to buy, we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are collectively most bullish on. In this particular group, a better alternative might be GHM.
