Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S) investors should pay attention to an increase in hedge fund sentiment recently.
At the moment, there are tons of methods market participants can use to monitor Mr. Market. A pair of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the top investment managers can trounce the market by a healthy amount (see just how much).
Equally as integral, positive insider trading activity is a second way to parse down the world of equities. Obviously, there are a number of reasons for an insider to sell shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would initiate a purchase. Several academic studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if “monkeys” understand where to look (learn more here).
Keeping this in mind, we’re going to take a glance at the recent action encompassing Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S).
How are hedge funds trading Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S)?
At year’s end, a total of 49 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 26% from the previous quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes substantially.
According to our comprehensive database, Paulson & Co, managed by John Paulson, holds the most valuable position in Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S). Paulson & Co has a $724 million position in the stock, comprising 4.5% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Omega Advisors, managed by Leon Cooperman, which held a $318 million position; the fund has 5.8% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other hedgies with similar optimism include D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw, James Dinan’s York Capital Management and Eric Mindich’s Eton Park Capital.
With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, some big names have been driving this bullishness. Paulson & Co, managed by John Paulson, established the most outsized position in Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S). Paulson & Co had 724 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Eric Mindich’s Eton Park Capital also initiated a $131 million position during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new S investors: Matthew Halbower’s Pentwater Capital Management, Carl Tiedemann and Michael Tiedemann’s TIG Advisors, and John Bader’s Halcyon Asset Management.
What have insiders been doing with Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is particularly usable when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the last 180-day time period, Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S) has seen 1 unique insiders purchasing, and 3 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
With the results demonstrated by our tactics, retail investors must always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S) applies perfectly to this mantra.
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