Greenbrier Companies Inc (GBX): Hedge Funds Aren’t Crazy About It, Insider Sentiment Unchanged

Should Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX) investors track the following data?

Now, according to many of your peers, hedge funds are viewed as bloated, outdated financial tools of an era lost to time. Although there are In excess of 8,000 hedge funds in operation currently, this site aim at the crème de la crème of this club, around 525 funds. Analysts calculate that this group controls the majority of all hedge funds’ total assets, and by watching their highest performing equity investments, we’ve figured out a number of investment strategies that have historically beaten Mr. Market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outperformed the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points annually 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 outperformed the S&P 500 index by 33 percentage points in 11 months (find a sample of our picks).

Just as useful, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to analyze the financial markets. There are plenty of incentives for a bullish insider to get rid of shares of his or her company, but just one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Plenty of academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if you understand what to do (learn more here).

Thus, let’s discuss the recent info about Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX).

Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX)

What does the smart money think about Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX)?

Heading into Q3, a total of 17 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of -6% from the previous quarter. With hedgies’ sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially.

According to our 13F database, Paul Reeder and Edward Shapiro’s PAR Capital Management had the largest position in Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX), worth close to $41.7 million, accounting for 1.2% of its total 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by GAMCO Investors, managed by Mario Gabelli, which held a $8.9 million position; 0.1% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Some other hedgies with similar optimism include Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Alexander Mitchell’s Scopus Asset Management and Robert Bishop’s Impala Asset Management.

Judging by the fact that Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX) has experienced declining interest from the smart money’s best and brightest, it’s safe to say that there exists a select few hedge funds that elected to cut their full holdings in Q1. Interestingly, Richard S. Meisenberg’s ACK Asset Management dumped the biggest stake of all the hedgies we monitor, totaling an estimated $5 million in stock. SAC Subsidiary’s fund, CR Intrinsic Investors, also said goodbye to its stock, about $2.5 million worth. These bearish behaviors are important to note, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 1 funds in Q1.

How have insiders been trading Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX)?

Insider buying made by high-level executives is at its handiest when the company in question has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll also review the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX). These stocks are Trinity Industries, Inc. (NYSE:TRN), Guangshen Railway Co. Ltd (ADR) (NYSE:GSH), Pacer International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACR), FreightCar America, Inc. (NASDAQ:RAIL), and American Railcar Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARII). This group of stocks are in the railroads industry and their market caps are similar to GBX’s market cap.

Company Name # of Hedge Funds # of Insiders Buying # of Insiders Selling
Trinity Industries, Inc. (NYSE:TRN) 26 0 0
Guangshen Railway Co. Ltd (ADR) (NYSE:GSH) 0 0
Pacer International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACR) 13 0 0
FreightCar America, Inc. (NASDAQ:RAIL) 8 0 0
American Railcar Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARII) 12 0 0

Using the returns shown by the previously mentioned research, regular investors should always track hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.

Discover how hedge fund piggybacking can benefit you