Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (VIVO): Are Hedge Funds Right About This Stock?

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Is it smart to be bullish on Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO)?

In the 21st century investor’s toolkit, there are many methods shareholders can use to track publicly traded companies. Two of the best are hedge fund and insider trading movement. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the top money managers can trounce the market by a significant amount (see just how much).

Equally as crucial, positive insider trading activity is a second way to look at the financial markets. Obviously, there are lots of stimuli for a corporate insider to sell shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would behave bullishly. Plenty of empirical studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this method if investors understand where to look (learn more here).

Furthermore, it’s important to discuss the recent info surrounding Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO).

What does the smart money think about Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO)?

In preparation for the third quarter, a total of 11 of the hedge funds we track held long positions in this stock, a change of 22% from the previous quarter. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a select group of notable hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings significantly.

Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO)Out of the hedge funds we follow, Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, holds the largest position in Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO). Renaissance Technologies has a $2.1 million position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Mario Gabelli of GAMCO Investors, with a $1.9 million position; less than 0.1%% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Remaining hedgies with similar optimism include Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group and Brian Ashford-Russell and Tim Woolley’s Polar Capital.

Consequently, particular hedge funds have jumped into Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO) headfirst. Renaissance Technologies, managed by Jim Simons, initiated the most valuable position in Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO). Renaissance Technologies had 2.1 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors also made a $1.9 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Joel Greenblatt’s Gotham Asset Management, Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group, and Brian Ashford-Russell and Tim Woolley’s Polar Capital.

What have insiders been doing with Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO)?

Insider buying made by high-level executives is particularly usable when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the last six-month time period, Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and zero insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

We’ll also examine the relationship between both of these indicators in other stocks similar to Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ:VIVO). These stocks are AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAG), Synta Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ:SNTA), Neogen Corporation (NASDAQ:NEOG), Quidel Corporation (NASDAQ:QDEL), and Abaxis Inc (NASDAQ:ABAX). This group of stocks belong to the diagnostic substances industry and their market caps are similar to VIVO’s market cap.

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