5 Most Unpopular Dow Stocks Among Hedge Funds

Unlike the aforementioned equities, Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) performed poorly last year, as the stock gained less than 1%. Things are looking even worse so far in 2015, as shares have dropped by around 12% year-to-date. Nevertheless, a total of 35 hedge funds felt optimistic enough regarding the company to have a long position in it. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust, which is managed by Michael Larson, held a stake of 11.26 million shares to close out last quarter. The position was valued at $1.03 billion and accounted for 5.15% of the firm’s equity portfolio. The other hedge funds betting on Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT) boasted much smaller holdings. Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management for example disclosed ownership of 860,500 shares, valued at $89.40 million, at the end of the fourth quarter.

Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) was the most popular stock among the five equities presented in this article, with a total of 40 hedge funds holding a stake in the company. Although shares lost approximately 5% of their value in 2014, there is reason to remain optimistic, as the stock has gained around 19% year-to-date. Furthermore, the airline carrier is considered one of the top earnings-per-share (EPS) stocks, registering an EPS growth ratio of 31.6% over the past five years. Edgar Wachenheim’s Greenhaven Associates is certainly bullish regarding Boeing Co (NYSE:BA), as it disclosed ownership of 1.29 million shares at the end of the last quarter, which were valued at around $168 million. In addition, Adage Capital Management still owned 1.26 million shares, despite reducing its exposure to the stock by 23% last quarter.

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