These Are The Most And Least Crowded Hedge Fund Stocks And Themes

With earnings set to being next week, investors are thinking beyond mere fundamentals (which in recent years have barely mattered) and shifting their attention to technicals and positioning. By which we mean hedge fund and/or retail crowding in the most popular names. And sure enough, as Goldman writes in its latest Hedge Funds Crowding Monitor note (available to pro subs), "US sector crowding is evolving rapidly beneath the surface."

As Goldman trader Kartik Singhal writes, Energy and Healthcare Equipment have seen among the largest directional rotations this week - both shifting decisively toward consensus longs, while Semis positioning intensifies on both the long and short side.