What This Metric Says About Anthem Inc (ANTM)?

Since Anthem Inc (NYSE:ANTM) has faced bearish sentiment from hedge fund managers, it’s safe to say that there lies a certain “tier” of funds who sold off their entire stakes by the end of the third quarter. Intriguingly, First Eagle Investment Management dropped the largest investment of the “upper crust” of funds monitored by Insider Monkey, valued at close to $306.2 million in stock, and Glenn Russell Dubin’s Highbridge Capital Management was right behind this move, as the fund said goodbye to about $30.1 million worth of shares.

Let’s now review hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Anthem Inc (NYSE:ANTM) but similarly valued. These stocks are American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NYSE:AEP), Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL), Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI), and Canadian Natural Resource Ltd (USA) (NYSE:CNQ). This group of stocks’ market values match ANTM’s market value.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 31 funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $1.08 billion, which is lower than the $2.65 billion in ANTM’s case. Crown Castle International Corp. (NYSE:CCI) is the most popular stock in this table, while Canadian Natural Resource Ltd (USA) (NYSE:CNQ) is the least popular one with only 21 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Anthem Inc (NYSE:ANTM) is more popular among hedge funds. Considering that hedge funds are fond of this stock in relation to its market cap peers, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and potentially include it in your portfolio.