Hedge Funds Are Betting On First Financial Corp (THFF)

Page 1 of 2

We know that hedge funds generate strong, risk-adjusted returns over the long run, therefore imitating the picks that they are collectively bullish on can be a profitable strategy for retail investors. With billions of dollars in assets, smart money investors have to conduct complex analyses, spend many resources and use tools that are not always available for the general crowd. This doesn’t mean that they don’t have occasional colossal losses; they do (like Ackman’s recent Valeant losses). However, it is still a good idea to keep an eye on hedge fund activity. With this in mind, as the current round of 13F filings has just ended, let’s examine the smart money sentiment towards First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF).

First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF) has experienced an increase in hedge fund sentiment recently. THFF was in 7 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of September. There were 4 hedge funds in our database with THFF positions at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article we will also compare THFF to other stocks, including FairPoint Communications Inc (NASDAQ:FRP), Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KOP), and El Pollo LoCo Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:LOCO) to get a better sense of its popularity.

Follow First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF)

Today there are a large number of methods that stock traders put to use to grade stocks. A duo of the best methods are hedge fund and insider trading signals. Our experts have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the best fund managers can beat their index-focused peers by a healthy margin (see the details here).

Keeping this in mind, we’re going to take a look at the latest action surrounding First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF).

What does the smart money think about First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF)?

Heading into Q4, a total of 7 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on this stock, a surge of 75% from the second quarter. With hedge funds’ sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were increasing their stakes substantially (or already accumulated large positions).

According to Insider Monkey’s hedge fund database, Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies has the biggest position in First Financial Corp (NASDAQ:THFF), worth close to $4.4 million, comprising less than 0.1% of its total 13F portfolio. On Renaissance Technologies’s heels is Bryn Mawr Capital, led by Ken Gray and Steve Walsh, holding a $2.8 million position; 0.5% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Some other peers that are bullish comprise Alexander Medina Seaver’s Stadium Capital Management, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management and John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors.

Page 1 of 2