Every quarter, the largest hedge funds in the world are required by law to tell you exactly what stocks they own. The filing is called a 13F-HR, and it's been public on the SEC's EDGAR database since 1978. Most retail investors have never looked at one.
What Is a 13F Filing?
Form 13F-HR is a quarterly disclosure required of any institutional investment manager that exercises discretionary control over $100 million or more in qualifying US equity securities. This includes hedge funds, mutual funds, pension funds, family offices, and registered investment advisers.
The filing must be submitted within 45 days of each calendar quarter end — so by May 15, August 14, November 14, and February 14. It lists every long equity position: the name of the security, the number of shares, the market value, and whether it's held directly or through options.
Which Funds File 13Fs?
Any manager over the $100M threshold — including firms you've heard of:
- Berkshire Hathaway (Warren Buffett)
- Renaissance Technologies
- Citadel Advisors
- Bridgewater Associates
- Tiger Global Management
- Pershing Square Capital (Bill Ackman)
What to Look For
New positions are the most interesting data point. When a fund that hasn't owned a stock suddenly appears with a significant position, that's worth investigating.
Position sizing tells you conviction level. A 0.1% portfolio weight is a speculative bet. A 10% position is a core thesis.
Consistency across quarters matters. A fund that holds and builds a position over 6+ quarters is demonstrating long-term conviction, not a trade.
The Limitations
13F data has real limitations you need to understand before acting on it:
- It's stale. Data can be up to 135 days old. Funds can fully exit positions between filings.
- No short positions. A fund reporting 5M shares long could be net short the stock through options or swaps not required on the 13F.
- No bonds or commodities. 13F is equities only.
Use InsiderRadar's Fund Tracker to search any hedge fund by name and view their latest 13F holdings. Combine 13F data with Form 4 insider trades for a more complete picture of where conviction is building in any given stock.