what if it was all fund buying and the shorts haven't covered yet?
NEW YORK -- Fund managers at Fidelity Investments are ramping up their stake in technology stocks, according to a research firm that monitors the company's buying patterns.
David O'Leary, president of Alpha Equity Research Inc., predicts that Fidelity's monthly Mutual Fund Guide - scheduled for release in the next few business days - will show managers are putting money back into the tech sector.
A seasonal buying opportunity in the sector, the worst of year-2000 fears assuaged and Fidelity's huge influx of new cash - the largest inflow since early 1996 - have combined to account for the buying spree, O'Leary said.
The company's year-to-date inflows of $13.1 billion through May 31 are the firm's highest over this period since 1996's $18.8 billion, according to Financial Research Corp. in Boston.
"I think there's going to be an enormous appetite on the part of Fidelity managers to buy tech stocks," said O'Leary, of the Portsmouth, N.H., firm. "They'll buy from July to November - that's what they did last year, and why they had a fantastic fourth quarter."
Added O'Leary, "I think the goal for Magellan is to get back to 25%."
What Fidelity managers have done in June and in the second quarter won't be known for certain until the Boston fund company releases its report in the next week. But O'Leary suspects, based on May increases over April, the trend will continue through June and the rest of the summer.
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