Is Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) a marvelous investment now? Hedge funds are taking a pessimistic view. The number of bullish hedge fund bets stayed the same which is a slightly negative development in our experience
In today’s marketplace, there are tons of metrics investors can use to watch stocks. A couple of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading interest. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top money managers can outpace the broader indices by a healthy margin (see just how much).
Equally as key, bullish insider trading sentiment is a second way to break down the stock market universe. Just as you’d expect, there are a number of motivations for a corporate insider to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very obvious reason why they would behave bullishly. Various academic studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this method if investors know what to do (learn more here).
Now, we’re going to take a glance at the recent action regarding Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH).
How are hedge funds trading Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH)?
In preparation for this year, a total of 11 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 0% from the third quarter. With hedge funds’ capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings substantially.
Of the funds we track, Southeastern Asset Management, managed by Mason Hawkins, holds the biggest position in Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH). Southeastern Asset Management has a $53 million position in the stock, comprising 0.2% of its 13F portfolio. On Southeastern Asset Management’s heels is AQR Capital Management, managed by Cliff Asness, which held a $12 million position; the fund has 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers that are bullish include Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group and Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management.
Due to the fact that Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) has faced bearish sentiment from hedge fund managers, it’s easy to see that there was a specific group of funds that elected to cut their positions entirely in Q4. At the top of the heap, Mark Travis’s Intrepid Capital Management dropped the biggest stake of the 450+ funds we monitor, valued at close to $32 million in stock.. SAC Subsidiary’s fund, Sigma Capital Management, also sold off its stock, about $5 million worth. These transactions are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest stayed the same (this is a bearish signal in our experience).
How are insiders trading Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH)?
Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is best served when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time period, Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) has seen 1 unique insiders purchasing, and 9 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH). These stocks are CubeSmart (NYSE:CUBE), DCT Industrial Trust Inc. (NYSE:DCT), Eastgroup Properties Inc (NYSE:EGP), Sovran Self Storage Inc (NYSE:SSS), and First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FR). This group of stocks belong to the reit – industrial industry and their market caps resemble PCH’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| CubeSmart (NYSE:CUBE) | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| DCT Industrial Trust Inc. (NYSE:DCT) | 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Eastgroup Properties Inc (NYSE:EGP) | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Sovran Self Storage Inc (NYSE:SSS) | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:FR) | 13 | 1 | 3 |
With the returns exhibited by the aforementioned tactics, retail investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Potlatch Corporation (NASDAQ:PCH) is no exception.
