Is Copying Hedge Fund 13Fs a Good Strategy?
What research says about cloning famous investors’ 13F filings, how much the 45-day lag costs, and where copycat strategies go wrong.
ResourcesGuide
How to Track Smart Money: 13F, Insider and Congress Filings
Where hedge fund holdings, insider trades and congressional trades are disclosed, how late each one is, and a simple routine for reading them without fooling yourself.
Key takeaways
- Smart money is tracked through four public filings: 13F fund holdings (due 45 days after quarter end), Form 4 insider trades (two business days), 13D/13G stakes above 5%, and congressional trade reports (up to 45 days).
- The lag matters most. A 13F shows what a fund held on the last quarter-end, not what it holds today, and it leaves out short positions.
- Form 4 is the freshest signal. Open-market purchases (code P) by insiders carry more information than grants, option exercises or planned sales.
- Famous names do not guarantee results. In Exent’s data, Berkshire Hathaway B shares returned 13.2% a year over the 10 years to Sep 30, 2026, vs 15.2% for SPY.
Which stocks do Wall Street’s best‑ranked analysts agree on? See them in Exent Gems →
In this article
- Where is smart money disclosed?
- How do I see what Warren Buffett and Berkshire own?
- What stocks do hedge funds own and buy the most?
- Where can I see insider trades for a stock?
- Can I follow what members of Congress trade?
- What do smart-money filings not tell you?
- A simple routine for following smart money
Where is smart money disclosed?
Smart money is disclosed in four places, each with its own filer, deadline and blind spots. “Smart money” here means investors who have to report their positions: large fund managers, company insiders, big shareholders and members of Congress. None of these filings is real time, and each one shows only part of the picture.
| Filing | Who files | Deadline | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form 13F | Managers with $100M+ in US-listed stocks | 45 days after each quarter ends | Long positions on the quarter-end date |
| Form 4 | Officers, directors, 10%+ holders | Generally two business days after the trade | Each purchase, sale, grant or exercise |
| Schedule 13D / 13G | Anyone owning more than 5% of a class | 13D: five business days; 13G (institutions): 45 days after quarter end | Large stakes, and for 13D the holder’s intentions |
| Periodic Transaction Report | Members of Congress and senior staff | 30 days after notice, never later than 45 days after the trade | Trades over $1,000, in value ranges |
Sources: the SEC’s Form 13F FAQ, the SEC bulletin on Forms 3, 4 and 5, the SEC’s 2023 beneficial ownership rules and the House Ethics Committee’s STOCK Act memo. The glossary covers each one: 13F filing, Form 4 and 13D vs 13G.
How do I see what Warren Buffett and Berkshire own?
Berkshire Hathaway’s stock holdings appear in its quarterly 13F on the SEC’s EDGAR database. Search EDGAR for the company, filter to 13F-HR filings and open the latest information table. The same steps work for any manager that files, including Pershing Square, Bridgewater, Renaissance Technologies, Citadel and Soros Fund Management. We do not list their positions here, because they change every quarter and a stale list would mislead you.
To see what a fund bought and sold last quarter, compare two consecutive 13Fs. Positions that appear for the first time are new buys. Positions that disappear were sold out. Changes in share count, not in market value, tell you whether the manager added or trimmed, because value also moves with the price.
Did Buffett beat the market in the last decade? Berkshire’s own shares are the cleanest test, although they reflect its operating businesses as well as its stock portfolio. In Exent’s data, as of Sep 30, 2026:
| 10 years to Sep 30, 2026 | Berkshire Hathaway B (BRK-B) | S&P 500 ETF (SPY) |
|---|---|---|
| Annualized return | 13.2% | 15.2% |
| Total return | 244.7% | 310.7% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.66 | 0.86 |
| Maximum drawdown | 24.3% | 23.9% |
Over that window Berkshire trailed the index, with a similar worst fall. Its longer record is very different, which is why the time window always matters. See Berkshire’s data page and how to measure a famous fund’s returns.
What stocks do hedge funds own and buy the most?
“Most-held by hedge funds” lists are built by adding up 13F filings across a set of tracked managers. The result depends on which funds are included and how positions are counted: by number of funds holding a stock, or by dollar value. Dollar-weighted lists are dominated by the largest US companies, simply because big funds hold big stocks.
“What hedge funds are buying this quarter” lists come from the change between two 13Fs. They are always describing the previous quarter. A position bought in early July can first appear in mid-November, and the fund may have sold it by then. Treat these lists as a source of ideas to research, not as a buy list. Whether copying them works is covered in is copying 13Fs a good strategy.
Where can I see insider trades for a stock?
Insider trades are on Form 4 filings, free on EDGAR under the company’s name, and on many stock research sites that republish them. Because the deadline is generally two business days, Form 4 is the freshest smart-money data that exists.
To find which stocks insiders are buying, filter rather than scroll:
- Keep code P only. P is an open-market or private purchase. Codes A (grants), M (option exercises) and F (tax withholding) are pay mechanics, not decisions.
- Look for clusters. Several insiders buying within a few weeks says more than one director’s small purchase.
- Size it. A purchase that is large relative to the insider’s salary or existing stake signals more conviction.
- Discount most sales. Insiders sell for taxes, diversification and pre-planned Rule 10b5-1 schedules.
More detail: insider buying and insider selling.
Can I follow what members of Congress trade?
Yes. Members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children report trades over $1,000 on Periodic Transaction Reports, filed with the House Clerk or the Senate. Amounts are reported in ranges such as $1,001 to $15,000, not exact figures, and ETFs and mutual funds are excluded. How to read them is in congress stock trading; whether members actually beat the market is in do Congress members beat the market.
What do smart-money filings not tell you?
- Why the position exists: a long stock can be one half of a hedged pair trade.
- Short positions: the SEC tells 13F filers not to report them.
- Today’s position: 13Fs are quarter-end snapshots, and confidential treatment can delay some holdings further.
- Position size relative to the whole fund: cash, bonds, non-US shares and derivatives are mostly missing.
- Whether the trade fits your portfolio: a fund’s 3% position may be your 30% position.
A simple routine for following smart money
- Pick a short list of managers with long, documented records and low turnover. High-frequency and multi-strategy firms change too fast for a quarterly snapshot to mean much.
- Read their 13Fs within days of the deadline, focusing on new positions and large adds.
- Check the same stocks for insider buying on Form 4 and for analyst coverage.
- Write down why the idea makes sense on its own, without the famous name attached.
- Size it for your own portfolio’s risk, not the fund’s.
For how to vet any idea before acting on it, see stock ideas.
How to follow smart money with Exent
- Stocks Radar shows insider, congress and 13F “smart money” views for a stock in one place.
- The same page shows analyst ratings, with analysts ranked by past accuracy.
- Gems flags stocks where several top‑rated analysts (4★ and above in Exent’s scoring) agree.
- Portfolio Analysis shows whether an idea would add a new risk or double up on one you already hold.
Frequently asked questions
Berkshire Hathaway lists its US stock holdings in a quarterly 13F filing on the SEC’s EDGAR database. The filing reflects the last quarter-end and is due 45 days later, so the current portfolio can differ.
Nobody knows in real time. Quarterly 13F filings show what funds bought during the previous quarter, published up to 45 days after it ended.
On the SEC’s EDGAR database, under each company’s Form 4 filings. Many free stock sites also republish them.
Their 13F filings are public on EDGAR. For high-turnover, hedged or quantitative firms, a quarter-end list of long positions says little about their actual strategy.
Billionaire managers who run funds disclose US-listed long positions on 13Fs. Their private businesses, real estate, bonds and shorts are mostly not in these filings, so a 13F is only part of their wealth.
The evidence is mixed. Some studies found copycat portfolios did well, but disclosure lags, missing short positions and fees reduce the edge, and many professional funds trail the S&P 500.
Get the picks Wall Street’s best analysts agree on.
Exent tracks 4,000+ analysts, keeps only the elite few with proven records, and surfaces the Gems where they agree.
See this week’s GemsLimited offer$1.95 for full access· full access
Educational content, not investment advice. Examples are illustrative; past performance does not guarantee future results.