A number of funds increase their stake in Nokia shares

Shares of Finnish handset manufacturer Nokia have risen from $2.63 a share to the current $3.31 for a 25% gain in just the last few days. Most Wall Street analysts have not been bullish on the stock. Consider that back in April, Nokia hit a then 16 year low of $4.38. The stock would have to rise a further 32% just to get back to that level. The next month, worries that the company would burn through its cash too quickly had analysts concerned.

Despite the concerns from analysts, those in charge of managing money for some of the major Wall Street firms have been adding to their stakes in Nokia during the last quarter. For example, Goldman Sachs has added 55 million shares to its Nokia position and now owns 116 million Nokia shares for a 90% increase during the July-September period. During the same three months, Barclays increased its Nokia stake by 115% while Credit Suisse upped its Nokia long position by 94%. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in the Finnish handset manufacturer by a whopping 700% to 32 million shares.

Could it be that Wall Street is once again manipulating the public into making a bad decision by having analysts talk down Nokia while the firm scoop up the shares with both hands? The Windows Phone 8 powered Nokia Lumia 920 is apparently off to a great start with U.K. retailer Clove saying that the phone is "selling like hotcakes." And it seems as though the stock is selling like hotcakes, too,

source: SeekingAlpha via WMPoweruser (1), (2)