VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF) shareholders have witnessed an increase in hedge fund sentiment of late.
In the eyes of most stock holders, hedge funds are assumed to be underperforming, old investment tools of the past. While there are greater than 8000 funds in operation at the moment, we at Insider Monkey look at the bigwigs of this group, about 450 funds. It is estimated that this group controls the lion’s share of all hedge funds’ total capital, and by paying attention to their highest performing equity investments, we have uncovered a few investment strategies that have historically outstripped the market. Our small-cap hedge fund strategy outstripped the S&P 500 index by 18 percentage points per annum for a decade in our back tests, and since we’ve began to sharing our picks with our subscribers at the end of August 2012, we have beaten the S&P 500 index by 23.3 percentage points in 8 months (see all of our picks from August).
Just as beneficial, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to parse down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are a variety of incentives for an executive to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would buy. Various academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this method if “monkeys” know where to look (learn more here).
With all of this in mind, let’s take a peek at the recent action surrounding VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF).
Hedge fund activity in VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF)
Heading into Q2, a total of 23 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 35% from the previous quarter.
As industrywide interest jumped, key money managers were breaking ground themselves. First Pacific Advisors LLC, managed by Robert Rodriguez and Steven Romick, assembled the biggest position in VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF). First Pacific Advisors LLC had 21.3 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Jeffrey Smith’s Starboard Value LP also made a $17.6 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors, and Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates.
How are insiders trading VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF)?
Insider purchases made by high-level executives is best served when the company in question has seen transactions within the past 180 days. Over the last six-month time frame, VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF) has experienced zero unique insiders purchasing, and 3 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also review hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF). These stocks are G&K Services Inc (NASDAQ:GK), Regis Corporation (NYSE:RGS), Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI), Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE:WTW), and Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc (NYSE:BFAM). This group of stocks are in the personal services industry and their market caps are closest to WOOF’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| G&K Services Inc (NASDAQ:GK) | 11 | 0 | 4 |
| Regis Corporation (NYSE:RGS) | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) | 20 | 1 | 1 |
| Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE:WTW) | 9 | 0 | 2 |
| Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc (NYSE:BFAM) | 15 | 4 | 0 |
With the returns exhibited by Insider Monkey’s studies, everyday investors should always watch hedge fund and insider trading activity, and VCA Antech Inc (NASDAQ:WOOF) is an important part of this process.
