As aggregate interest increased, specific money managers have been driving this bullishness. Citadel Investment Group, led by Ken Griffin, assembled the most valuable position in CoBiz Financial Inc (NASDAQ:COBZ). Citadel Investment Group had $0.7 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Sharif Siddiqui’s Alpenglow Capital also made a $0.5 million investment in the stock during the quarter.
Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as CoBiz Financial Inc (NASDAQ:COBZ) but similarly valued. These stocks are Student Transportation Inc (NASDAQ:STB), First Trust High Income Long/short Fund (NYSE:FSD), Rudolph Technologies Inc (NYSE:RTEC), and Unitil Corporation (NYSE:UTL). This group of stocks’ market values are closest to COBZ’s market value.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| STB | 6 | 9572 | 2 |
| FSD | 3 | 50448 | 0 |
| RTEC | 20 | 86704 | 2 |
| UTL | 7 | 30057 | -2 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 9 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $44 million. That figure was $19 million in COBZ’s case. Rudolph Technologies Inc (NYSE:RTEC) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand First Trust High Income Long/short Fund (NYSE:FSD) is the least popular one with only 3 bullish hedge fund positions. CoBiz Financial Inc (NASDAQ:COBZ) is not the least popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still below average. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard RTEC might be a better candidate to consider taking a long position in.
Disclosure: None
