You probably know from experience that there is not as much information on small-cap companies as there is on large companies. Of course, this makes it really hard and difficult for individual investors to make proper and accurate analysis of certain small-cap companies. However, well-known and successful hedge fund investors like Carl Icahn and George Soros hold the necessary resources and abilities to conduct an extensive stock analysis on small-cap stocks, which enable them to make millions of dollars by identifying potential winners within the small-cap galaxy of stocks. This represents the main reason why Insider Monkey takes notice of the hedge fund activity in these overlooked stocks.
NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC) shares haven’t seen a lot of action during the third quarter. Overall, hedge fund sentiment was unchanged. The stock was in 4 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of September. At the end of this article we will also compare NNVC to other stocks including TearLab Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAR), Datawatch Corporation (NASDAQ:DWCH), and AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO) to get a better sense of its popularity.
Follow Nanoviricides Inc. (NYSEMKT:NNVC)
Follow Nanoviricides Inc. (NYSEMKT:NNVC)
Keeping this in mind, we’re going to analyze the recent action encompassing NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC).
Hedge fund activity in NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC)
Of the funds tracked by Insider Monkey, Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, holds the most valuable position in NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC). Millennium Management has a $0.2 million position in the stock, comprising less than 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. On Millennium Management’s heels is Renaissance Technologies, led by Jim Simons, holding a $0.1 million position; less than 0.1% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the company. Remaining members of the smart money that hold long positions include D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw, and Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group.
We view hedge fund activity in the stock unfavorable, but in this case there was only a single hedge fund selling its entire position: LMR Partners. One hedge fund selling its entire position doesn’t always imply a bearish intent. Theoretically a hedge fund may decide to sell a promising position in order to invest the proceeds in a more promising idea. However, we don’t think this is the case in this case because only one of the 700+ hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey identified as a viable investment and initiated a position in the stock (that fund was Citadel Investment Group).
Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC). These stocks are TearLab Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAR), Datawatch Corporation (NASDAQ:DWCH), AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO), and CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSEMKT:CVM). All of these stocks’ market caps are similar to NNVC’s market cap.
| Ticker | No of HFs with positions | Total Value of HF Positions (x1000) | Change in HF Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| TEAR | 4 | 3555 | -1 |
| DWCH | 5 | 6467 | -2 |
| AVEO | 7 | 9348 | -1 |
| CVM | 4 | 689 | 0 |
As you can see these stocks had an average of 5 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $5 million. AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVEO) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand TearLab Corporation (NASDAQ:TEAR) is the least popular one with only 4 bullish hedge fund positions. Compared to these stocks NanoViricides Inc (NYSEMKT:NNVC) is as less popular as TEAR. Considering that hedge funds aren’t fond of this stock in relation to other companies analyzed in this article, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and understand why the smart money isn’t behind this stock. This isn’t necessarily bad news. Although it is possible that hedge funds may think the stock is overpriced and view the stock as a short candidate, they may not be very familiar with the bullish thesis. In either case more research is warranted.
