Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI) was in 8 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of December. SRI has seen a decrease in hedge fund interest lately. There were 12 hedge funds in our database with SRI holdings at the end of the previous quarter.
In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are tons of metrics market participants can use to track stocks. A pair of the most useful 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 best money managers can trounce the S&P 500 by a superb amount (see just how much).
Just as beneficial, positive insider trading activity is a second way to break down the financial markets. Just as you’d expect, there are lots of reasons for a bullish insider to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would initiate a purchase. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this method if investors know where to look (learn more here).
Now, let’s take a gander at the key action regarding Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI).
What does the smart money think about Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI)?
Heading into 2013, a total of 8 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of -33% from the previous quarter. With hedgies’ sentiment swirling, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings meaningfully.
When looking at the hedgies we track, Cannell Capital, managed by J. Carlo Cannell, holds the biggest position in Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI). Cannell Capital has a $5.4 million position in the stock, comprising 4.1% of its 13F portfolio. The second largest stake is held by GAMCO Investors, managed by Mario Gabelli, which held a $1.9 million position; the fund has less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedgies with similar optimism include Ken Brodkowitz and Mike Vermut’s Newland Capital, Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies and John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors.
Judging by the fact that Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI) has experienced falling interest from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, it’s safe to say that there was a specific group of hedgies who were dropping their positions entirely in Q4. Intriguingly, Carl Tiedemann and Michael Tiedemann’s TIG Advisors dropped the largest stake of the “upper crust” of funds we monitor, worth an estimated $1.6 million in stock., and “Richard S. Meisenberg of ACK Asset Management was right behind this move, as the fund dumped about $0.3 million worth. These transactions are important to note, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 4 funds in Q4.
How have insiders been trading Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI)?
Insider trading activity, especially when it’s bullish, is particularly usable when the primary stock in question has seen transactions within the past half-year. Over the last 180-day time period, Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI) has experienced 2 unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s check out hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI). These stocks are China Automotive Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAAS), Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSYS), Douglas Dynamics Inc (NYSE:PLOW), and Miller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLR). This group of stocks are in the auto parts industry and their market caps are similar to SRI’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| China Automotive Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAAS) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel Systems Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSYS) | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Douglas Dynamics Inc (NYSE:PLOW) | 6 | 0 | 5 |
| Miller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLR) | 5 | 0 | 1 |
With the returns shown by Insider Monkey’s time-tested strategies, everyday investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI) applies perfectly to this mantra.