Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM): Are Hedge Funds Right About This Stock?

Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM) was in 18 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. SANM has experienced an increase in hedge fund sentiment of late. There were 17 hedge funds in our database with SANM holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM)

According to most traders, hedge funds are assumed to be underperforming, outdated investment vehicles of the past. While there are more than 8000 funds trading today, we choose to focus on the crème de la crème of this group, close to 450 funds. Most estimates calculate that this group controls the lion’s share of the hedge fund industry’s total capital, and by watching their highest performing picks, we have revealed a number of investment strategies that have historically outstripped the S&P 500 index. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outperformed the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have trumped the S&P 500 index by 25 percentage points in 6.5 month (explore the details and some picks here).

Just as beneficial, bullish insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the marketplace. As the old adage goes: there are many motivations for an executive to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Several academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if “monkeys” know what to do (learn more here).

Keeping this in mind, let’s take a gander at the latest action regarding Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM).

How are hedge funds trading Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM)?

At year’s end, a total of 18 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 6% from the previous quarter. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully.

According to our comprehensive database, Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors had the most valuable position in Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM), worth close to $20 million, comprising 0.1% of its total 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Royce & Associates, managed by Chuck Royce, which held a $17 million position; 0% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Remaining peers that are bullish include Ron Gutfleish’s Elm Ridge Capital, Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital and Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management.

Now, key money managers have jumped into Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM) headfirst. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, initiated the largest position in Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM). Millennium Management had 3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group also made a $3 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The only other fund with a new position in the stock is Robert B. Gillam’s McKinley Capital Management.

How are insiders trading Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM)?

Bullish insider trading is most useful when the company we’re looking at has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the last 180-day time frame, Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

With the returns demonstrated by Insider Monkey’s studies, retail investors must always monitor hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Sanmina Corp (NASDAQ:SANM) is an important part of this process.

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