Facebook, Monsanto, More: Why These 5 Stocks Are Turning Heads Today

After sharp moves in each of the past three trading sessions, the markets are relatively quiet today, as all three index futures are up only modestly and crude futures are in the red by 0.6%.

Among the stocks that are capturing more attention than usual today are Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO), Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON), and Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F). Let’s find out why each company is in the spotlight and see how the smart money is positioned in each stock.

Our research determined that following the small-cap stocks that hedge funds are collectively bullish on can help a smaller investor to beat the S&P 500 by around 95 basis points per month (see the details here).

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) and Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) are in the spotlight after the two social media giants joined the First Draft Coalition, a collective of more than 30 other news organizations committed to solving the problem of fake news (mostly on social media). Some other news organizations in the collective include prestigious outlets such as the Washington Post, CNN, and the New York Times. By joining the organization, Facebook and Twitter are showing that they are more than just tech companies, and that they are committed to preventing their social media platforms from being abused for monetary or illegal purposes. In the past, hackers have created look-alike Twitter accounts or even hacked into authentic accounts to release illegitimate news concerning fake buyouts or serious events to profit from the subsequent stock movement.

Andreas Halvorsen‘s Viking Global owned over 20 million shares of Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) at the end of June, while 30 funds that we track were long Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) as of the most recent 13F reporting period.

Although it certainly has the resources to do so, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) won’t buy Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) anytime soon, mostly due to the resulting tax bill associated with the purchase. At the Delivering Alpha conference, Alibaba executive vice chairman Joseph Tsai said: “If there was an easy tax solution someone would have figured it out already.” Due to the sale of its internet properties, Yahoo’s value is mostly tied to its stake in Alibaba and therefore to Alibaba shares. The number of funds in our system with holdings in Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) fell by 16 during the second quarter to 81 at the end of June.

On the next page, we’ll examine why Monsanto and Ford are generating buzz today.

After several rounds of back and forth, Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) has finally agreed to sell itself to Bayer for $128 in cash per share, good for a transaction value of around $66 billion. Due to the deal’s size and complexity, the two companies don’t anticipate the merger closing until near the end of 2017. Although it isn’t the $130 per share deal that many investors were hoping for, the offer is at least better than Bayer’s previous offers of $127.50, $125, and $122 per share, respectively. Bayer has agreed to a $2 billion break-up fee if antitrust regulators don’t give the thumbs up to the deal. 87 funds that we track were long Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) at the end of the second quarter, up by 36 funds quarter-over-quarter, in anticipation of just such a deal.

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is making some waves today after releasing its future growth plan. During its investor day presentation, Ford outlined its strategy of fortifying its core business in trucks, vans, and commercial and performance vehicles; improving the performance of its traditionally under-performing segments like luxury, small vehicle, and select emerging market space; and investing more into the emerging opportunities of autonomy and mobility. In terms of specifics, Ford’s management plans to deliver growth at or above global GDP, deliver operating margins of 8% or higher for its core businesses, and 20% or more for its emerging businesses, and to provide returns in the top-quartile among the company’s peer group. Due to the company’s new initiatives, 2017 might be a softer year in terms of performance, while 2018 will be a stronger year. 31 successful hedge funds in our database had a long position in Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) as of the most recent 13F reporting period, down by two funds from the end of March.

Disclosure: None