Hedge Funds Are Selling Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR)

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Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR) was in 12 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of the first quarter of 2013. EXR investors should pay attention to a decrease in support from the world’s most elite money managers in recent months. There were 14 hedge funds in our database with EXR holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

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Just as key, positive insider trading sentiment is another way to break down the financial markets. Just as you’d expect, there are plenty of reasons for an executive to get rid of shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would buy. Several empirical studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this tactic if “monkeys” understand where to look (learn more here).

Now, we’re going to take a peek at the key action surrounding Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR).

What does the smart money think about Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR)?

At Q1’s end, a total of 12 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of -14% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes meaningfully.

3 of the Best REITs You Can Own Right NowAccording to our comprehensive database, AEW Capital Management, managed by Jeffrey Furber, holds the most valuable position in Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR). AEW Capital Management has a $71.7 million position in the stock, comprising 1.8% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by Capital Growth Management, managed by Ken Heebner, which held a $49.2 million position; 1.2% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedge funds with similar optimism include Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies, Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.

Due to the fact that Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR) has experienced a declination in interest from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, it’s easy to see that there were a few money managers who sold off their entire stakes at the end of the first quarter. It’s worth mentioning that John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors dropped the biggest position of the 450+ funds we key on, valued at about $7.7 million in stock.. Thomas Bailard’s fund, Bailard Inc, also dropped its stock, about $0.4 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 2 funds at the end of the first quarter.

Insider trading activity in Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR)

Insider purchases made by high-level executives is particularly usable when the primary stock in question has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last 180-day time frame, Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 2 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE:EXR). These stocks are Sovran Self Storage Inc (NYSE:SSS), DCT Industrial Trust Inc. (NYSE:DCT), CubeSmart (NYSE:CUBE), Duke Realty Corp (NYSE:DRE), and Biomed Realty Trust Inc (NYSE:BMR). All of these stocks are in the reit – industrial industry and their market caps match EXR’s market cap.

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