Insider Monkey recently finished processing more than 700 13F filings made by hedge funds and prominent investors. These filings show these funds’ portfolio positions as of September 30. In this article we are going to take a look at smart money sentiment towards Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS) using this extensive collection of data.
Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS) has experienced an increase in hedge fund interest lately, with 17 firms tracked by Insider Monkey reporting long positions in the stock. At the end of this article we will also compare Emergent Biosolutions Inc to other stocks including Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX), Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE), and Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA) to get a better sense of its popularity.
Follow Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS)
Follow Emergent Biosolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS)
Today there are several methods stock traders use to evaluate their stock investments. Some of the most innovative methods are hedge fund and insider trading signals. We have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best fund managers can outclass the S&P 500 by a significant amount (see the details here).
With all of this in mind, we’re going to take a peek at the recent action surrounding Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS).
How have hedgies been trading Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS)?
At the end of the third quarter, a total of 17 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a 6% rise from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ positions undergoing their usual ebb and flow, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their stakes substantially (or had already accumulated large positions).
Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Broadfin Capital, managed by Kevin Kotler, holds the biggest position in Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS). Broadfin Capital has a $46.2 million position in the stock, comprising 2.6% of its 13F portfolio. The second-most bullish fund is Renaissance Technologies, which holds a $22.1 million position; the fund has 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Other peers with similar optimism encompass D E Shaw, Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management, and Mark Kingdon’s Kingdon Capital.
As industrywide interest jumped, some big names have been driving this bullishness. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, established the most outsized position in Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS). Millennium Management had $2.4 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Matthew Tewksbury’s Stevens Capital Management also initiated a $0.5 million position during the quarter. The only other fund with a brand new Emergent Biosolutions Inc position is Peter Muller’s PDT Partners.
Let’s now take a look at hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS) but similarly valued. These stocks are Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX), Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE), Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA), and Beneficial Bancorp Inc (NASDAQ:BNCL). All of these stocks’ market caps resemble Emergent Biosolutions Inc’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| LXRX | 17 | 48280 | 1 |
| SYKE | 16 | 81477 | -1 |
| ARIA | 29 | 232647 | -2 |
| BNCL | 24 | 239677 | -1 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 21.5 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $151 million. That figure was $155 million in Emergent Biosolutions Inc’s case. Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARIA) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Sykes Enterprises, Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYKE) is the least popular one with only 16 bullish hedge fund positions. Emergent Biosolutions Inc (NYSE:EBS) is not the least popular stock in this group but hedge fund interest is still below average. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard Ariad Pharmaceuticals might be a better candidate to consider a long position in.
