What Hedge Funds Think of Semtech Corporation (SMTC)?

As industrywide interest jumped, some big names have jumped into Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC) headfirst. Highbridge Capital Management, led by Glenn Russell Dubin, initiated the biggest position in Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC). Highbridge Capital Management had $2.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. James Dondero’s Highland Capital Management also made a $0.5 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new SMTC investors: Mike Vranos’ Ellington, Philip Hempleman’s Ardsley Partners, and Neil Chriss’ Hutchin Hill Capital.

Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC) but similarly valued. These stocks are Astoria Financial Corp (NYSE:AF), AZZ Incorporated (NYSE:AZZ), International Speedway Corporation (NASDAQ:ISCA), and Precision Drilling Corp (USA) (NYSE:PDS). All of these stocks’ market caps are similar to SMTC’s market cap.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 11 funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $86 million. That figure was $83 million in SMTC’s case. International Speedway Corporation (NASDAQ:ISCA) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Precision Drilling Corp (USA) (NYSE:PDS) is the least popular one with only seven bullish hedge fund positions. Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC) 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 International Speedway Corporation (NASDAQ:ISCA) might be a better candidate to consider taking a long position in.