Is Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE) a good equity to bet on right now? We like to check what the smart money thinks first before doing extensive research. Although there have been several high profile failed hedge fund picks, the consensus picks among hedge fund investors have historically outperformed the market after adjusting for known risk attributes. It’s not surprising given that hedge funds have access to better information and more resources to find the latest market-moving information.
Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE) is a packaged snacks producer and among the funds we track, the interest in the stock remained flat during the third quarter. This is usually a negative indicator, but 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 or drop 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 ONE Gas Inc (NYSE:OGS), Momo Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:MOMO), and Weibo Corp (ADR) (NASDAQ:WB) to gather more data points.
Follow Snyder's-Lance Inc. (NASDAQ:LNCE)
Follow Snyder's-Lance Inc. (NASDAQ:LNCE)
To the average investor, there are a large number of gauges investors use to assess stocks. A couple of the most underrated gauges are hedge fund and insider trading signals. We have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best investment managers can trounce the S&P 500 by a significant margin (see the details here).
Now, we’re going to take a glance at the new action surrounding Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE).
How are hedge funds trading Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 12 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, unchanged over the quarter. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes significantly (or already accumulated large positions).
According to publicly available hedge fund and institutional investor holdings data compiled by Insider Monkey, Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors has the biggest position in Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE), worth close to $77 million, amounting to 0.5% of its total 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Lee Munder Capital Group, led by Lee Munder, holding a $9.8 million position; 0.2% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Some other hedge funds and institutional investors that hold long positions comprise Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management, Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates, and Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies.
Seeing as Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE) has experienced falling interest from the aggregate hedge fund industry, logic holds that there lies a certain “tier” of money managers who sold off their positions entirely in the third quarter. Intriguingly, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management dumped the largest investment of all the hedgies monitored by Insider Monkey, worth close to $1.8 million in stock, and Matthew Hulsizer’s PEAK6 Capital Management was right behind this move, as the fund cut about $0.3 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest stayed the same (this is a bearish signal in our experience).
Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Snyder ‘s- Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE) but similarly valued. These stocks are ONE Gas Inc (NYSE:OGS), Momo Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:MOMO), Weibo Corp (ADR) (NASDAQ:WB), and Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc (NYSE:DO). All of these stocks’ market caps match LNCE’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| OGS | 12 | 50563 | 3 |
| MOMO | 5 | 85534 | -3 |
| WB | 5 | 7945 | -1 |
| DO | 26 | 131790 | 6 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 12 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $69 million, lower than the $123 million in LNCE’s case. Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc (NYSE:DO) is the most popular stock in this table, while Momo Inc (ADR) (NASDAQ:MOMO) and Weibo Corp (ADR) (NASDAQ:WB) are the least popular ones with only 5 bullish hedge fund positions. Snyder’s-Lance Inc (NASDAQ:LNCE), compared to these stocks, registers an average level of interest. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard DO might be a better candidate to consider a long position.
