To the average investor, there are tons of indicators market participants can use to watch their holdings. A duo of the most underrated are hedge fund and insider trading sentiment. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top investment managers can outpace the broader indices by a healthy margin (see just how much).
Equally as necessary, bullish insider trading activity is a second way to look at the stock market universe. As the old adage goes: there are plenty of stimuli for an executive to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would initiate a purchase. Plenty of empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this strategy if investors know where to look (learn more here).
Keeping this in mind, let’s study the newest info surrounding Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN).
Hedge fund activity in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN)
In preparation for the third quarter, a total of 26 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 8% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes meaningfully.
Out of the hedge funds we follow, AQR Capital Management, managed by Cliff Asness, holds the largest position in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN). AQR Capital Management has a $33.2 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Clint Carlson of Carlson Capital, with a $27.7 million position; 0.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other peers that hold long positions include Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management and Robert Emil Zoellner’s Alpine Associates.
Now, particular hedge funds were leading the bulls’ herd. AQR Capital Management, managed by Cliff Asness, created the most valuable position in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN). AQR Capital Management had 33.2 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Clint Carlson’s Carlson Capital also made a $27.7 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management, and Robert Emil Zoellner’s Alpine Associates.
How are insiders trading Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN)?
Insider buying made by high-level executives is at its handiest when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the last 180-day time period, Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero 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 Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN). These stocks are Firstmerit Corp (NASDAQ:FMER), Associated Banc Corp (NASDAQ:ASBC), Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB), TFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:TFSL), and Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA). This group of stocks are the members of the regional – midwest banks industry and their market caps match HBAN’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Firstmerit Corp (NASDAQ:FMER) | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| Associated Banc Corp (NASDAQ:ASBC) | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| TFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:TFSL) | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) | 26 | 0 | 0 |
Using the results explained by Insider Monkey’s research, regular investors must always keep one eye on hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN) is an important part of this process.
