Is Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) Going to Burn These Hedge Funds?

Is Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) worth your attention right now? Prominent investors are becoming more confident. The number of bullish hedge fund bets increased by 5 lately.

According to most shareholders, hedge funds are perceived as unimportant, outdated financial tools of yesteryear. While there are greater than 8000 funds trading at the moment, we hone in on the moguls of this group, about 450 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group oversees the majority of the smart money’s total asset base, and by monitoring their top equity investments, we have unearthed a number of investment strategies that have historically beaten Mr. Market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points annually for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve started sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have outpaced the S&P 500 index by 25 percentage points in 6.5 month (check out a sample of our picks).

Just as key, bullish insider trading activity is another way to parse down the stock market universe. Obviously, there are a variety of reasons for a bullish insider to drop shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this strategy if investors know what to do (learn more here).

Keeping this in mind, it’s important to take a peek at the key action surrounding Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC).

How have hedgies been trading Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)?

Heading into 2013, a total of 19 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 36% from the third quarter. With hedgies’ sentiment swirling, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings considerably.

According to our comprehensive database, Mason Hawkins’s Southeastern Asset Management had the largest position in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC), worth close to $469 million, comprising 2.1% of its total 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by First Eagle Investment Management, managed by Jean-Marie Eveillard, which held a $315 million position; the fund has 1.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that hold long positions include Donald Chiboucis’s Columbus Circle Investors, Robert Pohly’s Samlyn Capital and Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management.

As industrywide interest jumped, key hedge funds were breaking ground themselves. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, initiated the biggest position in Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC). Millennium Management had 6 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. John Fichthorn’s Dialectic Capital Management also made a $4 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new VMC positions are Israel Englander’s Catapult Capital Management, Ken Brodkowitz and Mike Vermut’s Newland Capital, and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC)?

Bullish insider trading is at its handiest when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 3 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

With the returns exhibited by the aforementioned strategies, retail investors should always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) is an important part of this process.

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