Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN) is a widely discussed stock, but here’s one reason why the bears may win the argument for the rest of 2013.
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Equally as necessary, optimistic insider trading activity is a second way to look at the stock market universe. There are plenty of reasons for an executive to drop shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Several academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if shareholders understand what to do (learn more here).
Keeping this in mind, it’s important to discuss the recent info surrounding Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN).
Hedge fund activity in Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN)
In preparation for the third quarter, a total of 11 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of -31% from the first quarter. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes substantially.
Because Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN) has experienced a fall in interest from the smart money’s best and brightest, we can see that there is a sect of money managers who were dropping their entire stakes heading into Q2. Intriguingly, Patrick Halloran’s Wayzata Investment Partners dropped the biggest investment of the 450+ funds we track, worth an estimated $19.3 million in stock, and Glenn Russell Dubin of Highbridge Capital Management was right behind this move, as the fund sold off about $5.5 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest fell by 5 funds heading into Q2.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN)?
Bullish insider trading is at its handiest when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN) has seen 4 unique insiders buying, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
We’ll also examine the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ:WIN). These stocks are Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd (ADR) (NYSE:CHT), Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATNI), CenturyLink, Inc. (NYSE:CTL), TW Telecom Inc (NASDAQ:TWTC), and Frontier Communications Corp (NASDAQ:FTR). This group of stocks are the members of the telecom services – domestic industry and their market caps match WIN’s market cap.
