Why Himax, Petrobras, Staples, and More Are Trending Today

It’s been a very red day on Wall Street, as the Dow Jones Index is down by over 100 points and the S&P 500 is 0.74% lower, partly on renewed Brexit concerns. Among the stocks trending this afternoon are Himax Technologies, Inc. (ADR) (NASDAQ:HIMX), Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras (ADR) (NYSE:PBR), International Speedway Corp (NASDAQ:ISCA), Southwest Airlines Co (NYSE:LUV), and Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS). Let’s find out why each stock is in the spotlight and see how elite funds are positioned in each of them.

At Insider Monkey, we track over 765 hedge funds, whose quarterly 13F filings we analyze and determine their collective sentiment towards several thousand stocks. However, our research has shown that the best strategy is to follow hedge funds into their small-cap picks. This approach can allow monthly returns of nearly 95 basis points above the market, as we determined through extensive backtests covering the period between 1999 and 2012 (see the details here).

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Himax Rallies on Guidance

Himax Technologies, Inc. (ADR) (NASDAQ:HIMX) shares have surged by 6.4% after the company announced bullish preliminary second quarter results. For the quarter, Himax expects revenue of $201.1 million, an increase of 11.5% quarter-over-quarter and 18.8% year-over-year. Himax also expects GAAP earnings per diluted ADS of $0.115, up by 51.3% quarter-over-quarter and 125.5% year-over-year. Analysts had been anticipating revenue of around $198.61 million and earnings of $0.095 per share. In addition, Himax has stated that the retirement of its CTO a few days ago won’t “impact the Company’s business and technology development.” Of the 766 elite funds that we track, 27 owned $161.86 million in shares of Himax Technologies, Inc. (ADR) (NASDAQ:HIMX) on March 31, which accounted for 13.50% of the float.

Petrobras Retreats on Lower Crude

Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras (ADR) (NYSE:PBR) is 8% in the red due to lower crude prices. Although the supply and demand picture for the commodity has improved, some traders remain concerned about the impact that the Brexit will have on the global economy. If Britain leaving the EU causes a global recession, demand for crude will fall and crude prices will take longer to recover. Separately, Petrobras has recently put nine shallow-water fields up for sale, as the company seeks ways to trim its greater than $120 billion in debt. 23 top funds in our database were long Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras (ADR) (NYSE:PBR) at the end of the first quarter, down  by one from the end of the prior quarter.

On the next page we examine why International Speedway, Southwest Airlines, and Staples are grabbing headlines today.