This Metric Says You Are Smart to Buy ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ISIS)

Is ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS) worth your attention right now? Investors who are in the know are taking an optimistic view. The number of bullish hedge fund bets advanced by 9 in recent months.

In the financial world, there are dozens of indicators investors can use to watch Mr. Market. A couple of the most underrated are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best money managers can outperform the S&P 500 by a solid amount (see just how much).

Equally as integral, optimistic insider trading activity is another way to parse down the stock market universe. Just as you’d expect, there are many incentives for a corporate insider to downsize shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would initiate a purchase. Many academic studies have demonstrated the impressive potential of this strategy if piggybackers understand what to do (learn more here).

Consequently, let’s take a gander at the key action regarding ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS).

What have hedge funds been doing with ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS)?

In preparation for this quarter, a total of 14 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 180% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists a few noteworthy hedge fund managers who were boosting their stakes substantially.

Of the funds we track, Visium Asset Management, managed by Jacob Gottlieb, holds the largest position in ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS). Visium Asset Management has a $17.6 million position in the stock, comprising 0.5% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, which held a $11.9 million position; the fund has 0.1% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedge funds that are bullish include Joseph Edelman’s Perceptive Advisors, SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management and Louis Bacon’s Moore Global Investments.

As aggregate interest increased, key hedge funds were breaking ground themselves. Visium Asset Management, managed by Jacob Gottlieb, assembled the biggest position in ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS). Visium Asset Management had 17.6 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Israel Englander’s Millennium Management also made a $11.9 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The other funds with new positions in the stock are Joseph Edelman’s Perceptive Advisors, SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management, and Louis Bacon’s Moore Global Investments.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS)?

Insider buying is most useful when the company in question has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the last six-month time period, ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS) has experienced zero unique insiders buying, and 8 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s check out hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISIS). These stocks are United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR), Cubist Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:CBST), Amarin Corporation plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:AMRN), Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE:TARO), and The Medicines Company (NASDAQ:MDCO). This group of stocks are the members of the drug manufacturers – other industry and their market caps resemble ISIS’s market cap.