J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (JCP) Jumps Over 4% On Upgrade: Does The Smart Money Agree?

What does the smart money think about J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP)?

Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, holds the largest position in J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP). Renaissance Technologies has a $26.6 million position in the stock held in 3.16 million shares, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. The second-most bullish hedge fund manager is Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, which held a $17.9 million position held in 2.12 million shares of the retailer; the fund has less than 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers with similar optimism encompass Chuck Royce’s Royce & Associates, and Mike Masters’ Masters Capital Management.

As one would reasonably expect, key money managers were breaking ground themselves. It should be noted that Citadel created the largest position in J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) during the first quarter with its aforementioned $17.9 million holding. Mike Masters’ Masters Capital Management also made a $12.6 million investment in the stock during the quarter, holding call options underlying 1.5 million shares. The following funds were also among the new JC Penney investors: Alexander Mitchell’s Scopus Asset Management, Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management, and Jody LaNasa and Vivian Lau’s Serengeti Asset Management.

Because of the increase in interest from hedge funds and the positive ratings from analysts, it appears J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) is a good stock to buy at the moment.

Disclosure: None