A review of third quarter pure play hedge funds' 13F filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed that the top funds managed some $167 billion in equity holdings, up $13 billion from the second quarter, S&P Global Market Intelligence, a multi-asset class data provider, reported Monday.
The total number of equity positions held also increased to 463, up from 423 in the April-to-June period, as hedge funds bought big in the financials, energy and healthcare sectors, according to the report.
"While the macroeconomic and geopolitical tea leaves have been incredibly challenging to read this year, pure-play hedge funds seem to agree that there is some upside to be had in the equity markets," Pavle Sabic, head of market development at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said in a statement. "Total equity positions and total equity assets under management have increased in the third quarter at a pace we haven't seen since 2015, suggesting a healthy appetite for stocks in the financials, energy, and healthcare sectors."
The analysis showed that hedge funds bought $2.2 billion in financial sector stocks, $1.8 billion in energy sector stocks and $1.7 billion in healthcare sector stocks in the third quarter.
