Nelson Peltz’s Involvement in Pentair plc. Ordinary Share (PNR) Signals A Buying Opportunity

What have hedge funds been doing with Pentair plc. Ordinary Share (PNR)?

Heading into the second quarter, a total of 18 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were long in this stock, a drop of 28% from the end of the fourth quarter. With hedge funds’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes considerably.

According to hedge fund intelligence website Insider Monkey, Glenview Capital, managed by Larry Robbins, holds the largest position in Pentair plc. Ordinary Share (PNR). Glenview Capital has a $442.7 million position in the stock, comprising 2% of its 13F portfolio. The second-most bullish hedge fund manager is Joel Greenblatt of Gotham Asset Management, with an $84.3 million position; the fund has 0.6% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedge funds that hold long positions include Ian Simm’s Impax Asset Management, David E. Shaw’s D E Shaw, and Jay Petschek and Steven Major’s Corsair Capital Management.

Judging by the fact that Pentair plc. Ordinary Share (PNR) has faced bearish sentiment from hedge fund managers, we can see that there is a sect of money managers who were dropping their positions entirely heading into the second quarter. Interestingly, David Gallo’s Valinor Management LLC dropped the largest investment of the “upper crust” of funds followed by Insider Monkey, totaling close to $146 million in stock. Anand Parekh’s fund, Alyeska Investment Group, also dumped its holding, worth about $43.2 million. These moves are interesting, as aggregate hedge fund interest was cut by seven funds during the first trimester.

While the hedge fund outlook before the involvement of Trian was relatively sour, that is trumped by the latest catalyst of Peltz’s involvement, given the money manager’s track record of creating shareholder value, especially when there are no signs of friction from the company’s management as in this case. Therefore, we recommend a ‘Buy’ rating for the stock.

Disclosure: None