The Smart Money is Hoarding Shares of These 10 Healthcare Stocks, Part 2

#3 Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF)

 – Number of Hedge Fund Holders (as of September 30): 32
– Total Value of Hedge Fund Holdings (as of September 30): $1.67 billion
– Hedge Fund Holdings as Percent of Float (as of September 30): 33.10%

As long as Bill Ackman keeps his short position in the stock, Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) will always be controversial. Ackman famously announced that he was short a billion dollars worth of Herbalife shares in the middle of 2012 and called the company an illegal pyramid scheme. More than three years later, Herbalife is still around, with the FTC having done little, and shares of Herbalife are pretty much trading for the same price that they did back then. Shares of Herbalife have rallied by over 40% year-to-date, based partly on the hope that Ackman might have to cover his short position given his losses in other stocks. However, given Ackman’s excellent long-term track record, that hope might never come true.

#2 Clovis Oncology Inc (NASDAQ:CLVS)

 – Number of Hedge Fund Holders (as of September 30): 31
– Total Value of Hedge Fund Holdings (as of September 30): $1.22 billion
– Hedge Fund Holdings as Percent of Float (as of September 30): 34.60%

Clovis Oncology Inc (NASDAQ:CLVS) shares fell substantially on November 16 after the company announced that the confirmed response rate in rociletinib for the treatment of EGFR T790M+ lung cancer was lower than expected and that the FDA requested more data. Analysts are still optimsitic however, with JPMorgan rating the stock ‘Overeight’, with a $42 price target. Elite funds were bullish on the stock in the third quarter as well, with the number of funds long Clovis increasing by 2 to 31. Among the believers is Andreas Halvorsen‘s Viking Global, owning a stake of 836,332 shares.

#1 Horizon Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:HZNP)

 – Number of Hedge Fund Holders (as of September 30): 44
– Total Value of Hedge Fund Holdings (as of September 30): $1.13 billion
– Hedge Fund Holdings as Percent of Float (as of September 30): 35.70%

Seeing as Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) has experienced a substantial sell-off in recent quarters, it’s not surprising that Horizon Pharma PLC (NASDAQ:HZNP), which has a similar business model, has also sold off. Nevertheless, Valeant shares have stabilized in recent weeks as management has made convincing moves to contain the damage, and Horizon Pharma PLC shares have stabilized too. Horizon recently continued its accretive M&A strategy by buying Crealta Holdings LLC for $510 million in cash in a move that will add between $45 million-to-$50 million to Horizon’s non-GAAP EBITDA in the first year after it’s completed.

Disclosure: None