By: Stephanie Brown
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) might have clocked a record high of $115 in the market, but that has not stopped some of the biggest hedge funds in the U.S from offloading their stakes in the company. Recent quarterly filings clearly show that these investors might be ridding themselves of their shares by the same measure with which they bought them in Apple’s run up to launch its iPhone 6.
The frenzy behind iPhone 6 caused the stock to maintain a stable trading average above the $100 mark with Apple Pay, substantially sustaining the high trading margins. Three of the top U.S funds by equity holdings have already decreased their stakes in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as the rush to recoup invested funds heats up.
The offloading frenzy has already resulted in a $1.3 billion drop according to filings analyzed by S&P Capital IQ. Apple is not the only company that has registered massive sell positions. Chinese web services Baidu Inc. (ADR) (NASDAQ:BIDU) was the second most sold position, with hedge fund holders reducing their positions by a total of $921 million.
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) and Actavis plc (NYSE:ACT) have, on the other hand, resurrected themselves and are now the most sought after stocks, in the wake of Apple’s stakes being offloaded. Actavis achieved this thanks to news of its imminent merger with Allergan for $66 billion. It seems to have succeeded in fending off competition from Bill Ackerman and Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc. (NYSE:VRX) who were in the race for the Allergan deal. AbbVie’s new long position is valued at $1.9 billion, with Actavis coming in second at $1.5 billion.
CNBC reports that six of the 10 largest hedge funds in the U.S now own stakes in AbbVie, with seven additionally owning Actavis. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) has additionally attracted the attention from hedge funds, with five of the largest funds taking in new positions valued at $1.4 billion.
Technical Analysis:
Apple had a stupendous run from $96, reaching an all-time high of $117.28, pushing the stock into the overbought zone. A closer look at the chart based on the Fibonacci levels suggests that the stock might pull back on profit booking in near future, with immediate support at $110 and $106, and resistance at $117 and $121.
Actionable Insight:
Buy Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at current levels for target of $117 and $120, with stop-loss of $112.5.
