The hedge fund Holocene Advisors was founded and is managed by Brandon Haley. Holocene Advisors is a beta-neutral hedge fund with a portfolio value of over $18 billion. The investment strategy employed at the hedge fund is of sector-diversified long-short equity.
The healthcare sector takes up a significant portion of Holocene Advisors’ portfolio. The three most prominent healthcare companies that Holocene Advisors is invested in, include Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG), AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) and Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) .
Holocene Advisors has 98,134 shares in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. as of the Q3 of 2021. It is a multinational company based in California, US. It develops and markets robotics solutions for surgery and is most notable for its product called the da Vinci Surgical System, a console operated system surgeons use to perform gynecologic and cardiac procedures.
When it comes to AbbVie Inc., Holocene Advisors owns 1.8 million shares in the company as of Q3 of 2021. AbbVie Inc. is a global biotechnology and pharmaceutical company based in Illinois, US. On November 23, Societe Generale analyst Justin Smith upgraded AbbVie Inc. to ‘Buy’ rating with a price target of $172.
Let’s move down to the 10 pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Brandon Haley’s Holocene Advisors.
Our Methodology
We picked the top 10 pharmaceutical stocks from Holocene’s Q3 portfolio.
10. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $42.3 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.22%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 62
Eli Lilly and Company is an American multinational pharmaceutical company based out of Indiana, US. The company was famous for mass-producing the polio vaccine when it was first developed. It is known primarily for developing medications for mental health conditions, with Prozac being one of the most popular antidepressants developed by the company.
Holocene Advisors owns over 180,000 shares in the company making up 0.22% of their portfolio while the hedge fund, Fisher Asset Management is the leading stakeholder in the company with over 6 million shares.
On November 18, BMO Capital analyst Evan Seigerman initiated coverage of Eli Lilly and Company with an ‘Outperform’ rating and set the price target at $31. The analyst said that the company’s “superior” top and bottom-line growth warrants the multiple premium. The company posted Q3 revenue of $6.75 billion that beat analyst predictions by $136.6 million. The EPS for the company in Q3 was at $1.94.
9. Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $50.8 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.27%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35
Kura Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ:KURA) is a biotechnology, therapeutics, and pharmaceutical company based in California, US. The company is focused on developing targeted therapies to curb cancerous cell growth in mutated cellular pathways.
On June 24, Kura Oncology, Inc. publicly announced that the first patient has been dosed in the Phase 1b portion of KOMET-001, in the two-part clinical trial of the company’s oral and selective menin inhibitor, KO-539, in patients with refractory acute myeloid leukemia.
Holocene Advisors owns over 2.7 million shares in Kura Oncology, Inc. after a 5% increase in stake in the third quarter of 2021. However, in the Q3 of 2021, the hedge fund VenBio Select Advisor remains the largest stakeholder in the company with 4 million shares.
The company’s stock is one of the most significant healthcare companies that Holocene Advisors is invested in alongside Intuitive Surgical, Inc., AbbVie Inc., and Eli Lilly and Company
8. Insmed Incorporated (NASDAQ:INSM)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $60.2 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.32%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 18
Insmed Incorporated (NASDAQ:INSM) is a global pharmaceutical company based in New Jersey, US. The company is primarily focused on discovering and developing therapies and drugs for rare diseases. Holocene Advisors holds over 2.1 million shares in the company. They, however, decreased their stake in the company by 13% in Q3. The leading stakeholder as of the third quarter in 2021 is the hedge fund Palo Alto Investors with over 6 million shares.
On October 19, Morgan Stanley analyst Jeffrey Hung assumed coverage of Insmed with an ‘Overweight’ rating on the shares and set a price target of $52, down from $56. Hung believes that the company’s shares would primarily be driven by U.S. sales of Arikayce in the short term.
7. AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $69 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.37%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 41
AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) is another very prominent pharmaceutical company on the list. It particularly gained prominence after its contributions to developing a Covid-19 vaccine, popularly known as Oxford-AstraZeneca. The company’s stock jumped in value after WHO gave a greenlight for AstraZeneca vaccine to be used for emergencies in the earlier days when it was developed.
On November 16, AstraZeneca PLC and its partners have released the supply of two billion doses of their vaccine to over 170 countries across the globe continent in the last 11 months and roughly two-thirds of these doses have gone to lower-middle-income countries, including more than 175 million doses delivered to 130 countries via the COVAX facility. AstraZeneca PLC posted a Q3 revenue of $9.8 billion with an EPS of $0.54 missing analyst estimates by -$0.37. The company’s stock is prominent in the list of 10 pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Brandon Haley’s Holocene Advisors.
6. Alkermes PLC (NASDAQ:ALKS)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $78.7 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.42%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35
Alkermes PLC (NASDAQ:ALKS) is another prominent pharmaceutical company on the list. Its stock is among the most significant in the list of 10 pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Brandon Haley’s Holocene Advisors.
Alkermes PLC is primarily focused on neuroscience for treatments of addiction and other mental health conditions. On November 11, Mizuho analyst Vamil Divan decreased the price target on Alkermes PLC to $33 from $36 and kept a ‘Neutral’ rating on the shares.
5. Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $82.4 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.44%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) is an American international company based in Illinois. The company primarily focuses on development of solutions for various kidney diseases. Holocene Advisors owns over a million shares in the company after a bullish stake increase by 1904% in the third quarter of 2021. In the same quarter, the hedge fund Generation Investment Management was the leading stakeholder in the company with over 20 million shares making up 6.93% of their total portfolio.
The company filed a revenue of $3.23 billion in the same quarter with EPS of $1.02 beating analyst estimates by $0.08. On November 11, Baxter International Inc. announced a roughly $100M expansion of its sterile fill/finish manufacturing facility located in Germany. This facility is run by BioPharma Solutions, a business unit of Baxter International Inc. that specializes in partnering with foremost pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies on the development and contract-manufacturing of drug products for parenteral pharmaceuticals.
4. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALNY)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $124.8 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.67%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 40
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALNY) is another leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology company on the list. It is headquartered in Massachusetts, US. It is primarily focused on developing RNA interference therapeutics for genetic diseases. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. posted a Q3 revenue of 2021 at $187.6 million. It missed the analyst estimates for EPS by -$0.15, coming up with an EPS at -$1.72.
Holocene Advisors stake in the company comprises over 0.6 million shares in the third quarter of 2021. This is after the hedge fund increased its stake by 20% in the company in the same quarter. However, the leading stakeholder in the company is the hedge fund Casdin Capital with a total of 1 million shares in the company in the third quarter.
On November 22, Needham analyst Joseph Stringer raised the price target on Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to $205 from $180 and kept a ‘Buy’ rating on the shares.
3. Acceleron Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:XLRN)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $128.5 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.69%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 58
Acceleron Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:XLRN) is another pharmaceutical company based in Massachusetts, US. The company is primarily focused on the development of drugs that regulate specific proteins involved in repairing cell and tissue damage. Its stock is prominent in the list of 10 pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Brandon Haley’s Holocene Advisors. Holocene Advisors owns over 0.7 million shares in the company. They however, decreased their stake by 15% in the third quarter of 2021.
On November 22, Merck & Co., Inc. announced the successful acquisition of Acceleron Pharma Inc..
2. Mirati Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRTX)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $140 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 0.76%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 46
Mirati Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRTX) is a clinical level therapeutics and pharmaceutical company based in California, US. It is focused on finding breakthrough medical solutions to cancer. Holocene Advisors owns nearly 0.8 million shares in the company after a 10% stake-increase in the third quarter of 2021.
BMO Capital analyst Evan Seigerman initiated the coverage of Mirati Therapeutics, Inc. with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a price target of $187. The analyst said his rating is based on his view that adagrasib is a better inhibitor than KRAS G12C; that Lumakras’ first move advantage is most likely short-lived; a promising pipeline with a unique inhibitor to KRAS G12D; and the potential that Mirati Therapeutics, Inc. would be an “attractive” acquisition candidate for a bigger biopharma company.
1. AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)
Holocene Advisors’ Stake Value: $195 million
Percentage of Holocene Advisors’ 13F Portfolio: 1.06%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 81
AbbVie Inc. grabs the number 1 spot on the list for being the pharmaceutical company that Holocene Advisors is most heavily invested in relative to other pharma companies. It is another company on the list that is based in Illinois, US. It is focused on a variety of areas of research for drug development particularly for cystic fibrosis. Holocene Advisors owns 1.8 million shares in the company as of Q3 of 2021. However, the leading stakeholder in the company was famous investor Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway with over 14 million shares in the third quarter.
On November 17, Truist analyst Robyn Karnauskas pointed to a ClinicalTrials.gov posting on AbbVie’s Phase 2 study to analyze oral capsules of Galicaftor/Navocaftor/ABBV-119 in combination therapy in adults with Cystic Fibrosis, saying that the triple data could be pushed back a year or so according to an update posted on the site. The analyst has a ‘Buy’ rating on the company shares. AbbVie Inc. posted a third quarter revenue of $14.34 billion with an EPS of $3.33 beating analyst estimates by $0.11.
You can also take a peek at the 10 Best Healthcare Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds and 10 Latest Stock Picks of Billionaire Ray Dalio.
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This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
