What Hedge Funds Think of Other Investment Managers

Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP)

Next up is Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP), which counted 31 hedge fund supporters in our database at the end of the first quarter, down from 36 quarter-over-quarter. While positions were relatively small, accounting for only 2.7% of the company’s float in aggregate, Legg Mason Capital Management, now a part of ClearBridge, initiated a stake in the company during the quarter comprised of 765,307 shares. Also invested in the firm were D. E. Shaw, owning 711,408 shares, and David Harding’s Winton Capital Management, holding 567,816 shares.

Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE:AMP) has also had a rough year, with its stock down by 5.3% year-to-date. However, over the second quarter, it has gained more than 7% on the back of the Department of Labor’s new retirement rules.

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Next up is Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN), in which 31 hedge funds in our database were long on March 31. Their combined stakes were worth more than $1.9 billion and accounted for 8.2% of the company’s shares. Once again, Pzena Investment Management was among the largest shareholders of record, with 10.59 million shares, while Jonathon Jacobson’s Highfields Capital Management owned 11.04 million shares.

Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) is down by almost 12% year-to-date, largely driven by a double miss with its fiscal second quarter results. EPS of $0.61 missed estimates by $0.03, while revenue of $1.61 billion fell $40 million short of expectations. UBS downgraded the stock shortly after, claiming that the company relies on “just a handful of strategies to drive growth.”

Legg Mason Inc (NYSE:LM)

Lastly is Legg Mason Inc (NYSE:LM), which ranked as the most popular stock among the funds in our database, with 33 of them long the stock at the end of the first quarter of 2016. Their combined stakes accounted for more than 25% of the company’s shares as of March 31, making them overweight the stock. Among notable hedge fund shareholders were Nelson Peltz’s Trian Fund Management, which held the largest position as of the end of March, comprising 11.03 million shares, and Robert Rodriguez and Steven Romick’s First Pacific Advisors, which doubled its holding during the first quarter to 4.01 million shares.

Shares of Legg Mason Inc (NYSE:LM) lost 5.49% over the first quarter and have tumbled by a further 1.4% since April 1. Earlier this week, long-time Board Director Carol A. “John” Davidson initiated a new stake of 3,000 shares in the company. Though not large, the position is relevant in the sense that, after two years with the company, Mr. Davidson just now started a position, suggesting he feels it’s an optimal time to buy the stock.

Disclosure: Javier Hasse holds no positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article.