Hedge Funds Growing Fond Of Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NBIX)

Is Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) a good equity to bet on right now? We like to check what the smart money thinks first before doing extensive research. Although there have been several high profile failed hedge fund picks, the consensus picks among hedge fund investors have historically outperformed the market after adjusting for known risk attributes. It’s not surprising given that hedge funds have access to better information and more resources to find the latest market-moving information.

Is Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) going to take off soon? Investors who are in the know are turning bullish. The number of long hedge fund positions inched up by five recently. NBIX was in 36 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of September. There were 31 hedge funds in our database with NBIX positions at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article we will also compare NBIX to other stocks including Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX), Cavium Inc (NASDAQ:CAVM), and Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) to get a better sense of its popularity.

Today there are dozens of methods market participants can use to size up publicly-traded companies. Two of the most useful methods are hedge fund and insider trading indicators. Experts at Insider Monkey, a website specializing in hedge funds, have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the elite investment managers can trounce the market by a solid margin (see the details here).

Now, let’s go over the latest action regarding Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX).

What does the smart money think about Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX)?

Heading into Q4, a total of 36 of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held long positions in this stock, a rise of 16% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s sentiment swirling, there exists a few key hedge fund managers who were upping their holdings meaningfully.

When looking at the hedgies followed by Insider Monkey, Samuel Isaly’s OrbiMed Advisors has the most valuable position in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX), worth close to $151.8 million, corresponding to 1.5% of its total 13F portfolio. The second-most bullish hedge fund manager is Perceptive Advisors, managed by Joseph Edelman, which holds a $117.1 million position; 9.4% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Other members of the smart money with similar optimism consist of Jacob Gottlieb’s Visium Asset Management, Israel Englander’s Millennium Management, and Julian Baker and Felix Baker’s Baker Bros. Advisors.

As aggregate interest increased, key hedge funds have jumped into Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) headfirst. Columbus Circle Investors, managed by Clifford Fox, assembled the most outsized position in Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX). Columbus Circle Investors had $18.4 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Jason Karp’s Tourbillon Capital Partners also made an $18 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new NBIX investors: Eric Bannasch’s Cadian Capital, Arthur B Cohen and Joseph Healey’s Healthcor Management LP, and Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies.

Let’s also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX). We will take a look at Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX), Cavium Inc (NASDAQ:CAVM), Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR), and Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc (NASDAQ:GLPI). This group of stocks’ market caps match NBIX’s market cap.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 22 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $373 million, while the same pool of investors had $697 million invested in NBIX. Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc (NASDAQ:GLPI) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Questar Corporation (NYSE:STR) is the least popular one with only 15 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:NBIX) is more popular among hedge funds. Considering that hedge funds are fond of this stock and growing fonder, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and potentially include it in your portfolio.