Is Akamai Technologies, Inc. (AKAM) Going to Burn These Hedge Funds?

Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM) was in 31 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. AKAM shareholders have witnessed an increase in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds in recent months. There were 23 hedge funds in our database with AKAM positions at the end of the previous quarter.

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are many metrics market participants can use to track the equity markets. Two of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best investment managers can trounce the market by a significant margin (see just how much).

Equally as key, positive insider trading activity is another way to break down the stock market universe. Obviously, there are a number of incentives for a corporate insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this method if “monkeys” know where to look (learn more here).

Now, we’re going to take a look at the latest action encompassing Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM).

How are hedge funds trading Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM)?

At Q1’s end, a total of 31 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 35% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a few notable hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings substantially.

When looking at the hedgies we track, Coatue Management, managed by Philippe Laffont, holds the biggest position in Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM). Coatue Management has a $190.2 million position in the stock, comprising 2.4% of its 13F portfolio. On Coatue Management’s heels is TriOaks Capital Management, managed by Jeffrey Jon Berney, which held a $73.6 million call position; 10.1% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedge funds that are bullish include Clifton S. Robbins’s Blue Harbour Group, Panayotis Takis Sparaggis’s Alkeon Capital Management and John C. Walker’s Stonerise Capital Management.

As aggregate interest increased, specific money managers have been driving this bullishness. TriOaks Capital Management, managed by Jeffrey Jon Berney, established the most outsized call position in Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM). TriOaks Capital Management had 73.6 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Clifton S. Robbins’s Blue Harbour Group also made a $41.3 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new AKAM positions are John C. Walker’s Stonerise Capital Management, George Soros’s Soros Fund Management, and Lee Hobson’s Highside Capital Management.

How have insiders been trading Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM)?

Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the company in question has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest 180-day time period, Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM) has seen 2 unique insiders purchasing, and 5 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s check out hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM). These stocks are AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL), IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ:IACI), Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN), Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX), and Tripadvisor Inc (NASDAQ:TRIP). This group of stocks are the members of the internet information providers industry and their market caps are similar to AKAM’s market cap.