What is an institutional signal (13F)?
An institutional signal is a scored event derived from SEC Form 13F filings — the quarterly disclosure of holdings by investment managers with over $100M under management. It surfaces when a large fund opens, exits, or materially changes a position.
A new or increased institutional position leans bullish; a sold or trimmed position leans bearish. The signal is weighted by the reported dollar value of the position and the size of the manager’s overall portfolio.
What 13F reveals
Institutional managers must report their U.S. equity holdings each quarter on Form 13F, generally within 45 days of quarter-end. This exposes what hedge funds, asset managers, and pensions actually own — and, quarter over quarter, what they are accumulating or exiting.
The 45-day lag
13F is a lagged snapshot: it reflects positions as of quarter-end, disclosed up to 45 days later. That makes it useful for spotting conviction and rotation over time, not for intraday timing — QuantConomy treats it as a slower, structural signal rather than a fast one.
Recent examples
Live institutional signals from the platform, newest first. Each links to the company.
| Asset | Direction | Strength | What happened | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0C6362 NVIDIA CORP | very bullish | 54 | Heck Capital Advisors, LLC increased position in 0C6362 by 209.6% - 107,213 shares ($21.45M) - [moderate very bullish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
| 0B7553 ISHARES CORE MSCI EMERGING MARKETS | bullish | 73 | Heck Capital Advisors, LLC increased position in 0B7553 by 46.1% - 910,801 shares ($75.45M) - [strong bullish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
| 0A9098 ALPHABET INC | very bullish | 48 | Heck Capital Advisors, LLC increased position in 0A9098 by 100.7% - 34,698 shares ($12.40M) - [weak very bullish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
| 0B7553 ISHARES CORE MSCI EMERGING MARKETS | bearish | 52 | FORM Wealth Advisors, LLC reduced position in 0B7553 by 24.5% - 603,991 shares ($50.03M) - [moderate bearish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
| 0G9113 INVESCO SENIOR LOAN ETF | very bullish | 47 | FORM Wealth Advisors, LLC increased position in 0G9113 by 70.4% - 533,675 shares ($10.87M) - [weak very bullish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
| 0B9559 DELL TECHNOLOGIES INC | bearish | 35 | Hudson Value Partners, LLC reduced position in 0B9559 by 32.7% - 30,104 shares ($12.99M) - [very weak bearish signal] | 2026-07-10 |
See these in context in the daily market digest . Market context, not advice.
Frequently asked
- Does a 13F show short positions?
- No. Form 13F only discloses long U.S. equity and certain option positions. Shorts, cash, and non-U.S. holdings are not included, so it is an incomplete but still valuable view of a manager’s book.
- Why follow institutional signals if they lag?
- Because they reveal conviction and rotation that shorter signals miss — when several large, disciplined managers accumulate the same name across quarters, that structural buying is meaningful even with the reporting delay.
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