10 Biotech Stocks to Buy Today According to Ken Fisher

In this piece, we will take a look at the ten biotechnology stocks to buy according to Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management.

Ken Fisher is one of the most renowned executives in the hedge fund industry. He is in charge of the hedge fund Fisher Asset Management, which is headquartered in Camas, Washington, United States.

Mr. Fisher has decades of experience in the financial world, after having started his journey in the sector in the late 1900s. He received a degree in economics in 1972 and by the end of the decade would go on to found Fisher Asset Management. His hedge fund is one of the largest in the world, and according to its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the three months ending in December last year, its portfolio was worth $178 billion placing it among the largest portfolios not only globally but also in the United States.

The hedge fund executive, whose net worth was $5.4 billion as of April 2022, set up his firm in 1979. Over the years, Fisher Asset Management has managed to win several accolades in the industry for itself. These include being recognized as one of the Financial Times’s top three hundred American hedge funds consistently for the six years between 2014 and 2020. Not only has the fund been recognized in the United States, but it has also won several awards in Europe. One of these is the German magazine Cash Online’s Best Employer In The Financial Sector’s 2015 award alongside ADVFN’s Wealth Manager of the Year award in 2016.

However, its time in the industry has not been without controversy. The most famous of this erupted in 2019 when Mr. Fisher was alleged to have made distasteful comments at a private event for finance executives. This resulted in billions of dollars of capital leaving his firm, despite the executive clarifying that his statements were taken out of context.

In this piece, we will focus on Fisher Asset Management’s top investments in the biotechnology sector. This sector came at the forefront of global attention in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. This was due to the fact that some of the most effective vaccines against the virus were developed using modified ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technologies, which fall in the ambit of biotechnology. A deep look at the hedge fund’s investment portfolio reveals that its largest investments are in GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK), Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS), and AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN).

Our Methodology

In order to sift out Fisher Asset Management’s top biotechnology stock picks, we took a look at its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the fourth quarter of last year. This enabled us to identify the stocks, and once they were picked out, we analyzed them through their earnings reports, analyst coverage, investor letters, large shareholders, and hedge fund sentiment garnered through Insider Monkey’s survey of 924 funds for the same period as the SEC filings.

10. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $56 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.03%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 19

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX) is an oral and small molecule medicine developer that is headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, United States. It develops treatments for influenza, Marburg, yellow fever, zika, and ebola.

Mr. Fisher’s investment firm owned 4 million BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. shares by the end of the fourth quarter of last year. This allowed it to have a $56 million stake. During the same time period, 19 of the 924 hedge funds surveyed by Insider Monkey had also invested in the firm.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s fourth quarter results revealed that it had earned $47 million in revenue and -$0.40 in non-GAAP EPS, in a poor performance that missed analyst estimates for both. Subsequently, the Bank of America decreased the company’s share price target to $14 from $21 in April 2022, stating that the company’s decision to pause clinical trials for treatment to investigate abnormalities pushed revenue further down the pipeline.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s largest investor is Julian Baker and Felix Baker’s Baker Bros Advisors who owns 12 million shares worth $176 million.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. joins Novartis AG, GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK), and AstraZeneca PLC in the list of Mr. Fisher’s top biotech stock picks.

9. Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $67 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.03%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 26

Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) is a research-based drug and medicine development services provider based in the United States. It allows its customers to develop drugs during several phases of the clinical development process. This list of customers also includes biotechnology companies, that use the company’s services to navigate the medical, operational, and regulatory processes during drug development.

For its fourth fiscal quarter, Medpace Holdings, Inc. reported $308 million in revenue and $1.32 in GAAP EPS, pleasing Wall Street by beating analyst estimates for both. Baird raised its price target to $170 from $160 in March 2022, highlighting that share buybacks will boost investor confidence and play well for the share price.

Fisher Investments owned 311,313 Medpace Holdings, Inc. shares during Q4 2021, enabling it to hold a $67 million stake. Insider Monkey’s survey of 924 hedge funds for the three months ending in December 2021 revealed that 26 had owned stakes in the firm.

Greg Poole’s Echo Street Capital Management is Medpace Holdings, Inc.’s largest investor through a $127 million stake via 587,203 shares.

Wasatch Global Investors mentioned the company in its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“Another significant contributor was Medpace Holdings, Inc. (MEDP)—which provides life-sciences services including management and monitoring of clinical trials, regulatory submissions, quality assurance and other services designed to increase the efficiency of organizations’ research processes. In its most recent financial announcement, the company reported significant growth in net revenues and a substantial increase in net new business wins compared to the same period a year ago. This was especially welcome news because Medpace had previously incurred losses as the company laid the groundwork for future success. We believe Medpace should continue to benefit from its role as a facilitator of fundamental research functions. In addition to the company’s strong management, we like the fact that Medpace serves small biotechnology companies and gives us some exposure to the biotech industry without the often “all or nothing” nature of the industry.”

8. Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $105 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.05%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 38

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) is a life science research and diagnostic device manufacturer that sells its products in the United States and globally. It develops reagents and apparatus that are used by healthcare companies including biotechnology firms. Some biotechnology research techniques that rely on this equipment are transfection, multiplex immunoassays, and protein function and interaction analysis.

Fisher Asset Management’s fourth quarter 2021 stake in Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. was worth $105 million and it came through the firm owning 140,024 shares. Insider Monkey’s Q4 2021 survey revealed that 38 out of 924 hedge funds had also bought the company’s shares.

Citi raised its price target for Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. to $800 from $750 in February 2022, justifying the decision by stating that strong quarterly guidance will serve the company well.

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.’s largest investor is Paul Marshall and Ian Wace’s Marshall Wace LLP. This is through a $251 million stake that comes courtesy of it owning 333,370 shares.

7. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $110 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.06%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83

Johnson & Johnson is one of the oldest healthcare companies in the world. It is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States. Alongside developing a host of consumer healthcare and pharmaceutical products, the company is also known for its presence in the biotechnology sector via investing in up and coming companies.

Fisher Asset Management owned a $110 million stake in Johnson & Johnson by the end of Q4 2021, by holding 648,009 shares. Insider Monkey’s research for the same time period revealed that of the 924 hedge funds profiled, 83 had owned the company’s shares.

For its fiscal Q4, Johnson & Johnson raked in $24.8 billion in revenue and $2.13 in non-GAAP EPS, as it beat analyst EPS estimates but missed them for revenue. Morgan Stanley set a $173 price target for the company in April 2022, highlighting that JNJ’s shares are trading at a discount to the S&P 500 index.

Johnson & Johnson’s largest investor is Terry Smith’s Fundsmith LLP, which owns 7.22 million shares worth $1.23 billion.

6. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $125 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.07%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST) develops and sells containment and delivery products that are used for drugs and pharmaceutical products. These are also used in the biotechnology sector. Some of the products are self injection platforms. containment platforms, vials, and cartridges.

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. raked in $730 million in revenue and $2.04 in non-GAAP EPS, beating analyst estimates for both. The company entered into a partnership with the famed glass maker Corning in January 2022, through which the latter will provide it with advanced drug packaging and delivery systems.

As the fourth quarter of last year came to an end, Fisher Asset Management held 268,070 West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. shares. These were worth $125 million and represented 0.07% of its investment portfolio. During the same time period, 35 of the 924 hedge fund holdings analyzed by Insider Monkey held the company’s shares.

Henry Ellenbogen’s Durable Capital Partners is West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.’s largest investor through owning 859,210 shares that are worth $402 million.

Baron Funds mentioned the company in its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“Outperformance of the Fund’s investments in Health Care, Financials, and Communication Services and its lower exposure to the lagging Consumer Discretionary sector added the most value. Positive stock selection in Health Care was driven by pharmaceutical packaging manufacturer West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. We reduced our stake in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., a successful long-term holding, to recognize some profits as the stock reached record levels.”

Along with GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK), Novartis AG, and AstraZeneca PLC, West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. is a top Fisher Asset Management biotech stock.

5. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $148 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.08%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) is an American healthcare company that develops several kinds of pharmaceutical products which also include those developed through biotechnology. The firm’s vaccine for the COVID-19 coronavirus is one such example, as it uses novel modified ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technology to stimulate antibody production against the virus.

Fisher Asset Management held 2.5 million Pfizer Inc. shares by the end of last year’s fourth quarter, enabling it to hold a $148 million stake that represented 0.08% of its investment portfolio. Insider Monkey’s survey of 924 hedge funds for the same time period revealed that 83 had also invested in the company.

Pfizer Inc. reported $23 billion in revenue and $1.08 in non-GAAP EPS for its fourth fiscal quarter, missing analyst revenue estimates but beating them for EPS. Morgan Stanley set a $55 price target for the company in May 2022, as it initiated coverage for the healthcare sector.

Pfizer Inc.’s largest shareholder is Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management which owns 10 million shares worth $608 million.

ClearBridge Investments mentioned the company in its fourth quarter 2021 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“While the level of general turnover abated as we progressed through 2021, it remained high in one area: post-COVID-19 recovery plays. The concept behind this investment thesis was, and still is, straightforward: with the advent of effective vaccines, the path from pandemic to endemic is just a matter of time. As this transition occurs, the estimated excess savings of over $2 trillion built up on U.S. consumer balance sheets will unlock dramatic pent-up demand for experiences, especially global travel. This investment case seemed especially compelling when the Pfizer vaccine positively surprised markets in November 2020. As a result, we made post-COVID-19 stocks (which were trading well below our estimate of recovery value) a sizable theme within the portfolio. We understood this to be a more aggressive tilt in positioning because it required a major improvement in demand to catalyze fundamentals and drive price toward higher business values. While we accepted that recovery would not be smooth and that it would take time to deploy vaccines both domestically and globally, we decided that recovery was the logical path of least resistance and we were being well compensated for these risks.

What we did not account for, however, was vaccine hesitancy and the risk of further infection waves. As a result, the first variant wave, Delta, was a negative surprise to both the market and our team. When the risk surfaced, we immediately updated our probability-driven models and debated how we should react. The resulting conclusion was that the recovery would be delayed and that we should reduce our exposure quickly, subsequently targeting the most aggressive recovery stocks such as cruise lines. We again acted swiftly and decisively to the positive surprise that Pfizer had delivered a high-efficacy antiviral COVID-19 pill. This pill should greatly reduce COVID-19 severity risks globally, increasing the probability of a global travel recovery in 2022. While this is still true, the emergence of the highly mutated Omicron variant set off another infection wave which spurred us to again act quickly and further reduce our risk exposure. This back-and-forth may sound exhausting, but it highlights our compulsion to act if we determine a surprise has a large enough impact on the probabilities that power our valuation-driven investment cases.

4. Roche Holding AG (OTCMKTS:RHHBY)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $242 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.13%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 3

Roche Holding AG (OTCMKTS:RHHBY) is a Swiss company that develops and sells prescription pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. It describes itself as the world’s largest biotechnology company, through having developed treatments for a variety of diseases such as those covering cancer, the eyes, immune system, and the nervous system.

For its latest fiscal year, Roche Holding AG posted CHF62 billion in revenue and CHF19.81 in non-GAAP EPS, beating analyst revenue estimates and missing those for non-GAAP EPS. Stifel set a CHF410 price target for the company in February 2022, stating that the company’s COVID-19 diagnostics kit was a testament to its transformative capabilities.

Mr. Fisher’s investment firm owned 4.6 million Roche Holding AG shares worth $242 million as December 2021 came to an end. Insider Monkey studied the holdings of 924 hedge funds for Q4 2021 and discovered that 3 had owned the company’s shares.

Harding Loevner mentioned the company in its Q4 2021 investor letter, stating that:

“Health Care boosted relative performance as our holdings benefitted from the pandemic both coming and going. Roche and Lonza saw heightened interest in treatment, testing, and vaccination activities to battle the waves of newer COVID-19 variants.

3. GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $803 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.44%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK) is a pharmaceutical product, vaccine, and other healthcare products developer and manufacturer that is based out of Brentford, United Kingdom. It is also more than three centuries old since it was set up in 1715. The company has biotechnology manufacturing plants and has acquired several biotech firms as well.

Fisher Investments held an $803 million stake in GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK) during Q4 2021, by owning 18 million shares making it the company’s largest investor according to Insider Monkey’s research. Insider Monkey’s fourth quarter 2021 survey of 924 hedge funds revealed that 36 had invested in the firm.

GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK) posted £9.5 billion in revenue and a GAAP EPS of £0.15 by the end of its fiscal fourth quarter. At the same time, the company outlined that it expects its sales to grow between 5% and 7% during the calendar year 2022.

GlaxoSmithKline plc (NYSE:GSK)’s second largest investor is Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies which owns 10 million shares worth $450 million.

2. Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $908 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.5%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25

Novartis AG is a healthcare company that sells pharmaceutical products and materials used in medicine production. Its contract manufacturing services allow biotechnology firms to manufacture their products according to the precise demands of the industry.

Novartis AG reported $13.3 billion in revenue and $1.40 in non-GAAP EPS by the end of its fiscal Q4. This saw the company miss analyst estimates for both metrics. Stifel set a CHF87 price target for the company in February 2022, sharing that the company’s stock has needlessly underperformed the broader market.

Fisher Asset Management owned 10 million Novartis AG shares by the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, letting it hold a $908 million stake and making it the company’s largest investor according to Insider Monkey’s research. Apart from Mr. Fisher, 25 out of the 924 hedge funds polled by us had invested in the firm.

1. AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Fisher Asset Management’s Stake Value: $908 million

Percentage of Fisher Asset Management’s 13F Portfolio: 0.5%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42

AstraZeneca PLC is a biotechnology company that is involved in manufacturing pharmaceutical products. Its products target several diseases such as those of the lungs and kidneys, alongside psychiatric ailments.

By the end of the fourth quarter of last year, Fisher Investments held a $1.1 billion stake in AstraZeneca PLC  by owning 20 million shares. This made the investment firm the company’s largest investor. During the same time period, 42 out of the 924 hedge funds part of Insider Monkey’s survey had also invested in AstraZeneca PLC.

For its fiscal fourth quarter, AstraZeneca PLC raked in $12 billion in revenue and $1.67 in non-GAAP EPS, beating analyst estimates for both. Stifel set a GBp 12,300 price target for the company in February 2022, sharing its belief that the firm’s growth rate is the strongest in the sector.

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