Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE) was in 12 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012. CORE has seen an increase in enthusiasm from smart money lately. There were 9 hedge funds in our database with CORE positions at the end of the previous quarter.
If you’d ask most stock holders, hedge funds are viewed as unimportant, outdated investment tools of years past. While there are greater than 8000 funds with their doors open today, we hone in on the leaders of this club, around 450 funds. It is estimated that this group oversees the majority of the smart money’s total asset base, and by paying attention to their highest performing picks, we have spotted a number of investment strategies that have historically outperformed Mr. Market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outpaced the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points a year for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have trumped the S&P 500 index by 24 percentage points in 7 months (see the details here).
Equally as key, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the marketplace. Obviously, there are many stimuli for an executive to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would behave bullishly. Many academic studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this tactic if piggybackers understand where to look (learn more here).
Now, it’s important to take a gander at the key action regarding Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE).
How are hedge funds trading Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE)?
Heading into 2013, a total of 12 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 33% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of key hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully.
Of the funds we track, Wynnefield Capital, managed by Nelson Obus, holds the biggest position in Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE). Wynnefield Capital has a $33.4 million position in the stock, comprising 11.6% of its 13F portfolio. On Wynnefield Capital’s heels is Cliff Asness of AQR Capital Management, with a $6.4 million position; the fund has less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedge funds with similar optimism include Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies and Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management.
As one would reasonably expect, key hedge funds have jumped into Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE) headfirst. Ellington, managed by Mike Vranos, created the most outsized position in Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE). Ellington had 0.3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group also initiated a $0.2 million position during the quarter. The only other fund with a new position in the stock is Michael Weinstock’s Monarch Alternative Capital.
Insider trading activity in Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE)
Bullish insider trading is at its handiest when the primary stock in question has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest half-year time frame, Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and 5 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also review hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE). These stocks are Susser Holdings Corporation (NYSE:SUSS), SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU), Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Inc (NYSE:NGVC), Village Super Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:VLGEA), and Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA). This group of stocks are in the grocery stores industry and their market caps resemble CORE’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Susser Holdings Corporation (NYSE:SUSS) | 16 | 1 | 5 |
| SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU) | 21 | 0 | 1 |
| Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Inc (NYSE:NGVC) | 7 | 1 | 2 |
| Village Super Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:VLGEA) | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Ingles Markets, Incorporated (NASDAQ:IMKTA) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
With the results demonstrated by the aforementioned studies, retail investors should always pay attention to hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:CORE) is an important part of this process.
