McGrath RentCorp (MGRC): Are Hedge Funds Right About This Stock?

Now, some big names have been driving this bullishness. Stevens Capital Management, led by Matthew Tewksbury, created the most outsized position in McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC). Stevens Capital Management had $0.3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Matthew Hulsizer’s PEAK6 Capital Management also made a $0.3 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with brand new MGRC positions are Robert B. Gillam’s McKinley Capital Management and Glenn Russell Dubin’s Highbridge Capital Management.

Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) but similarly valued. These stocks are Alamo Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALG), Bob Evans Farms Inc (NASDAQ:BOBE), Virtus Investment Partners Inc (NASDAQ:VRTS), and Saia Inc (NASDAQ:SAIA). This group of stocks’ market caps are similar to MGRC’s market cap.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 12 funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $106 million, which is higher than the $43 million figure in MGRC’s case. Bob Evans Farms Inc (NASDAQ:BOBE) is the most popular stock in this table, while Alamo Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALG) is the least popular one with only 10 funds holding shares. McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) is not the most popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still above average. This is a slightly positive signal but we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard Bob Evans Farms Inc (NASDAQ:BOBE) might be a better candidate to consider taking a long position in.

Disclosure: none