Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (KOF): Insiders Aren’t Crazy About It

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Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF) was in 7 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. KOF investors should be aware of a decrease in activity from the world’s largest hedge funds in recent months. There were 9 hedge funds in our database with KOF positions at the end of the previous quarter.

Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF)

According to most traders, hedge funds are seen as slow, outdated investment vehicles of the past. While there are more than 8000 funds trading today, we at Insider Monkey hone in on the elite of this club, around 450 funds. It is estimated that this group controls the majority of all hedge funds’ total capital, and by watching their highest performing picks, we have revealed a few investment strategies that have historically outperformed the market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per year for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve started sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have outpaced the S&P 500 index by 24 percentage points in 7 months (see the details here).

Equally as integral, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to parse down the world of equities. Obviously, there are lots of incentives for a corporate insider to get rid of shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would buy. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if piggybackers know what to do (learn more here).

With these “truths” under our belt, let’s take a glance at the latest action regarding Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF).

What have hedge funds been doing with Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF)?

Heading into 2013, a total of 7 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of -22% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists an “upper tier” of key hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings considerably.

When looking at the hedgies we track, Michael Larson’s Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust had the most valuable position in Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF), worth close to $926.2 million, comprising 5.5% of its total 13F portfolio. On Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust’s heels is Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, which held a $102.5 million position; 0.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management, Jane Mendillo’s Harvard Management Co and David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments.

Seeing as Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF) has experienced a declination in interest from hedge fund managers, it’s safe to say that there is a sect of money managers who sold off their full holdings heading into 2013. Interestingly, Peter Rathjens, Bruce Clarke and John Campbell’s Arrowstreet Capital said goodbye to the biggest stake of the “upper crust” of funds we key on, totaling close to $19.2 million in stock.. Lee Ainslie’s fund, Maverick Capital, also sold off its stock, about $13.7 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as total hedge fund interest was cut by 2 funds heading into 2013.

How are insiders trading Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF)?

Bullish insider trading is most useful when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest six-month time period, Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Coca-Cola FEMSA, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:KOF). These stocks are Monster Beverage Corp (NASDAQ:MNST), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP), Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE:DPS), Coca-Cola HBC S.A. (ADR) (NYSE:CCH), and Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc (NYSE:CCE). This group of stocks are the members of the beverages – soft drinks industry and their market caps are closest to KOF’s market cap.

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