Hedge funds bought winners and sold losers in the first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic roiled global markets.
To see which stocks were the most and least popular among funds, Lori Calvasina — the head of US equity strategy at RBC Capital Markets — analyzed the holdings of 342 hedge funds during the first quarter by combing through 13F filings.
In the quarter, hedge funds actively lowered their exposure to industrials, led by airlines, aerospace and defense, according to the report. Calvasina calls the most-dumped S&P 500 stocks the "submarines."
This was at least partially spurred by the coronavirus pandemic, which swiftly cratered demand for airlines as consumers started to shelter in place and cancel travel to risk exposure to the disease. Later, the US and other countries banned all non-essential travel, putting additional pressure on the airline industry.
March also marked the end of the longest-ever bull market as stocks fell into bear territory at the fastest pace on record. The coronavirus pandemic's economic impact on the US invstors caused many investors to flee to safety.
The stock market has recovered since the end of the first quarter, with the S&P 500 up roughly 32% from its March 23 low. But the names on the hedge fund's most-sold list have not seen such strong rebounds.
"Most names have been weak in the stock market drawdown and recovery," Calvasina wrote.
Here are the 10 S&P 500 stocks most exited by hedge funds in the first quarter, ranked in order of change in number of funds owned from the fourth quarter of 2019.
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