Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT) was in 19 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. SRPT shareholders have witnessed an increase in enthusiasm from smart money in recent months. There were 16 hedge funds in our database with SRPT positions at the end of the previous quarter.
Just as beneficial, bullish insider trading activity is another way to parse down the marketplace. Obviously, there are a variety of stimuli for a bullish insider to cut shares of his or her company, but only one, very simple reason why they would buy. Plenty of academic studies have demonstrated the market-beating potential of this strategy if piggybackers understand what to do (learn more here).
Now, let’s take a gander at the latest action surrounding Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT).
What does the smart money think about Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT)?
At the end of the first quarter, a total of 19 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 19% from the first quarter. With hedge funds’ capital changing hands, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were increasing their holdings substantially.
According to our comprehensive database, Perceptive Advisors, managed by Joseph Edelman, holds the largest position in Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT). Perceptive Advisors has a $99.3 million position in the stock, comprising 11.9% of its 13F portfolio. On Perceptive Advisors’s heels is Andreas Halvorsen of Viking Global, with a $25.5 million position; the fund has 0.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Some other hedgies that are bullish include Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors, George Soros’s Soros Fund Management and Joseph Edelman’s Perceptive Advisors.
With a general bullishness amongst the heavyweights, key money managers were breaking ground themselves. Viking Global, managed by Andreas Halvorsen, established the largest position in Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT). Viking Global had 25.5 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. James Pallotta’s Raptor Capital Management also made a $8.7 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new SRPT investors: D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw, Sanford J. Colen’s Apex Capital, and SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management.
Insider trading activity in Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT)
Insider buying is most useful when the primary stock in question has experienced transactions within the past half-year. Over the latest six-month time period, Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 1 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT). These stocks are Acorda Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ACOR), Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR), VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ:VVUS), Santarus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNTS), and Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX). This group of stocks are the members of the biotechnology industry and their market caps are closest to SRPT’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Acorda Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ACOR) | 10 | 0 | 7 |
| Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ:VVUS) | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Santarus, Inc. (NASDAQ:SNTS) | 15 | 1 | 14 |
| Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:LXRX) | 9 | 0 | 0 |
With the results exhibited by our research, everyday investors must always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading activity, and Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT) is an important part of this process.
