At the moment, there are a multitude of metrics shareholders can use to watch Mr. Market. A pair 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 investment managers can outpace their index-focused peers by a significant amount (see just how much).
Just as necessary, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to look at the world of equities. Obviously, there are a variety of stimuli for a bullish insider to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Many empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this tactic if shareholders know where to look (learn more here).
Furthermore, let’s discuss the latest info for BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT).
How have hedgies been trading BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT)?
In preparation for the third quarter, a total of 26 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 8% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ capital changing hands, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially.
Out of the hedge funds we follow, Matt McLennan’s First Eagle Investment Management had the biggest position in BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT), worth close to $469.1 million, comprising 1.4% of its total 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Adage Capital Management, managed by Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson, which held a $90.6 million position; the fund has 0.3% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedge funds that are bullish include Clint Carlson’s Carlson Capital, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.
Consequently, certain bigger names have been driving this bullishness. First Eagle Investment Management, managed by Matt McLennan, initiated the most valuable position in BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT). First Eagle Investment Management had 469.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management also initiated a $90.6 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new BBT positions are Clint Carlson’s Carlson Capital, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.
Insider trading activity in BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT)
Insider buying made by high-level executives is particularly usable when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last six-month time frame, BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT) has seen 3 unique insiders purchasing, and 12 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
We’ll go over the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT). These stocks are SCBT Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:SCBT), United Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBSI), First Citizens BancShares Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA), Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV), and BankUnited (NYSE:BKU). This group of stocks belong to the regional – mid-atlantic banks industry and their market caps are closest to BBT’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| SCBT Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:SCBT) | 6 | 2 | 1 |
| United Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:UBSI) | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| First Citizens BancShares Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Synovus Financial Corp. (NYSE:SNV) | 27 | 9 | 0 |
| BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) | 15 | 0 | 9 |
Using the results demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s analyses, regular investors should always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading activity, and BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT) is no exception.
