A market correction in the third quarter, spurred by a number of global macroeconomic concerns ended up having a negative impact on the markets and many hedge funds as a result. The stocks of smaller companies were especially hard hit during this time as investors fled to investments seen as being safer. This is evident in the fact that the Russell 2000 ETF underperformed the S&P 500 ETF by 14 percentage points between June 25 and the end of October. We also received indications that hedge funds were trimming their positions amid the market volatility and uncertainty, and given their greater inclination towards smaller cap stocks than other investors, it follows that a stronger sell-off occurred in those stocks. Let’s study the hedge fund sentiment to see how those concerns affected their ownership of American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT) during the quarter.
American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT) has experienced an increase in enthusiasm from smart money lately. American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT) was in 42 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of the third quarter of 2015. There were 39 hedge funds in our database with American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT) holdings at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article, we will also compare American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT) to other stocks, including Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB), Anthem Inc (NYSE:ANTM), and Public Storage (NYSE:PSA) to get a better sense of its popularity.
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Now, let’s take a peek at the recent action surrounding American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT).
How have hedgies been trading American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 42 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, an increase of 8% from the second quarter. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes meaningfully (or already accumulated large positions).
According to Insider Monkey’s hedge fund database, Charles Akre’s Akre Capital Management has the most valuable position in American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT), worth close to $554.6 million, accounting for 12.9% of its total 13F portfolio. On Akre Capital Management’s heels is Highfields Capital Management, managed by Jonathon Jacobson, which holds a $292.3 million position; the fund has 2.6% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that hold long positions comprise Doug Silverman and Alexander Klabin’s Senator Investment Group, Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management, and Farallon Capital.
