Stryker Corporation (SYK): Are Hedge Funds Right About This Stock?

Seeing as Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK) has experienced a declining sentiment from the smart money, it’s safe to say that there exists a select few hedgies who sold off their positions entirely by the end of the third quarter. It’s worth mentioning that Eric Mindich’s Eton Park Capital dumped the largest position of all the hedgies tracked by Insider Monkey, comprising an estimated $37.2 million in stock. Zach Schreiber’s fund, Point State Capital, also cut its stock, about $33.5 million worth of shares. These bearish behaviors are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 11 funds by the end of the third quarter.

Let’s now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK). We will take a look at Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALXN), The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR), Bank of Montreal (USA) (NYSE:BMO), and CIGNA Corporation (NYSE:CI). All of these stocks’ market caps match Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK)’s market cap.

As you can see, these stocks had an average of 42 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $1.78 billion. That figure was $883 million in Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK)’s case. CIGNA Corporation (NYSE:CI) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand, Bank of Montreal (USA) (NYSE:BMO) is the least popular one with only 17 bullish hedge fund positions. Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK) is not the least popular stock in this group, but hedge fund interest is still below average. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard, CIGNA Corporation (NYSE:CI) might be a better candidate to consider a long position.