Do Hedge Funds Love Spirit Realty Capital Inc (SRC)?

As one would reasonably expect, key money managers have been driving this bullishness. Ascend Capital, managed by Malcolm Fairbairn, created the biggest position in Spirit Realty Capital Inc (NYSE:SRC). Ascend Capital had $10.7 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Curtis Schenker and Craig Effron’s Scoggin also made an $8.9 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new SRC investors: Richard Driehaus’s Driehaus Capital, David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, and J. Alan Reid, Jr.’s Forward Management.

Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Spirit Realty Capital Inc (NYSE:SRC) but similarly valued. These stocks are Phillips 66 Partners LP (NYSE:PSXP), Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:ENH), Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR), and Mercadolibre Inc (NASDAQ:MELI). This group of stocks’ market values resemble SRC’s market value.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 15 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $148 million. That figure was $337 million in SRC’s case. Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:ENH) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Phillips 66 Partners LP (NYSE:PSXP) is the least popular one with only 7 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Spirit Realty Capital Inc (NYSE:SRC) 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.