Twitter, Ionis, Biogen, and More: Here’s Why These Five Stocks Are Making Headlines

Wall Street is in bull mode today as the Dow Jones index is up by over 250 points, and the Nasdaq and S&P are each more than 1.7% in the green. Given that the FBI cleared Hillary Clinton over the email matter, many traders evidently think the odds of a Clinton Presidency are now higher.

Among the stocks that are in the green today are Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS), Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD), Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB), and Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:IONS). Let’s take a closer look at why the five stocks are moving higher and analyze hedge fund sentiment towards each of them.

At Insider Monkey, we track around 750 hedge funds and institutional investors. Through extensive backtests, we have determined that imitating some of the stocks that these investors are collectively bullish on, can help retail investors generate double digits of alpha per year. The key is to focus on the small-cap picks of these funds, which are usually less followed by the broader market and allow for larger price inefficiencies (see the details).

Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR), Twitter profile, iPhone, Social network, Tweet, Media

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Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is 3% in the green after rumors resurfaced that the company could still sell itself. According to Betaville editor Ben Harrington, although his information is “very much speculation”, his sources say that the likes of Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) and others have put forth offers in the low $20’s in terms of feelers. Given that AT&T recently agreed to buy Time Warner, it’s not surprising that there are rumors that another media company might take a second look at Twitter.

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According to our database of 749 funds which filed 13Fs for the June quarter, 30 were long Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) at the end of June, while 44 owned stakes in Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS).

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Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) shares are up by 0.7% after Will Green of Stephens hiked his price target on the stock to $225 from $205 per share and reiterated his ‘Overweight’ rating on them. Green believes Pioneer has one of the best balance sheets among E&Ps in the Permian and that the company has the inventory to power its long-term growth goals. Green also likes how Pioneer has hedged some of its production to reduce risk. 74 funds in our database owned $3.56 billion worth of Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) shares on June 30, which accounted for 14.40% of the float.

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On the next page, we’ll find out why traders are piling into Biogen and Ionis Pharmaceuticals today.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:IONS) and Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) shares have skyrocketed by 17% and 6.6% respectively after CHERISH, a phase 3 clinical trial assessing nusinersen (Trade Name: SPINRAZA) for the potential treatment of spinal muscular atrophy, met its primary endpoint. Specifically, analysis of the data from the study found that children receiving nusinersen experienced a highly statistically significant improvement in motor function compared to those who did not receive treatment. Nusinersen also demonstrated a favorable safety profile in the study.

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Biogen, the global licensee of the drug, plans to prepare for a potential launch of the drug in the United States as early as the end of 2016 or the first quarter of 2017. Traders are excited about the news because there is currently no approved treatment for spinal muscular atrophy, which is characterized by loss of motor neurons in the spinal cord and lower brain stem, resulting in severe and progressive muscular atrophy and weakness. Patients with the most severe type of spinal muscular atrophy could be paralyzed and have difficulty breathing and swallowing. Ionis shares are up because the company could potentially earn up to $225 million in milestone payments and royalties in the mid-teens, percentage-wise, if the drug is ultimately approved. 73 funds tracked by Insider Monkey had long positions in Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) at the end of June, while 16 were long Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:IONS).

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