A number of institutional investors increased their ownership of biopharmaceutical companies during the most recent quarter.
Incyte Corporation, for instance — which develops proprietary therapeutics-related solutions for patients with unmet medical needs — has drawn interest from investors at multiple points this year.
Incyte’s roster of in-development medications includes items designed to address oncology and inflammation, dermatology and autoimmunity-related needs.
Some of the institutional investors who have obtained a stake in the global biopharmaceutical company include Vanguard Group Inc., which now holds 20,382,756 shares of the company’s stock, and global value-oriented and event-driven hedge fund Armistice Capital, which increased its amount of Incyte shares by nearly 25% recently, according to Nasdaq data.
The 13F-HR form Armistice Capital filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed, at the time of its June 30 reporting date, the hedge fund owned 1,764,000 shares of Incyte stock. As of the Sept. 30, 2024 reporting date, the fund possessed 2,196,105 shares of the company’s stock.
Other Biopharmaceutical Investments
Armistice Capital’s top holdings, as of Sept. 30, included stock from both Incyte and another biopharmaceutical company, Immunovant Inc., according to the institutional investor trading website GuruFocus.
Armistice Capital currently has 3,548,000 shares of Immunovant’s stock, an increase of more than 4% from its previous amount, following the purchase of an additional 151,091 shares, according to Nasdaq data. Armistice’s most recent 13-F filing lists the value of its Immunovant holdings as $101,153,480.
Armistice Capital had increased its position in Immunovant in the second quarter by adding 1,232,909 shares of its stock, a 57% increase, according to an October MarketBeat article — which brought its total number of shares to 3,396,909.
Institutional investors own more than 47% of the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company’s stock, according to MarketBeat. In late October, the publication reported 11 investment analysts had given Immunovant’s stock a buy rating.
One — HC Wainwright — reaffirmed its buy rating and identified a $51 price target for Immunovant shares in a late September research note. Another, Oppenheimer, raised its price target for the stock from $47 to $53 and gave it an outperform rating in October.
Immunovant produces autoimmune disease-related treatments that target the neonatal fragment crystallizable receptor. Its investigational products include IMVT-1402, a second-generation antibody, and batoclimab, a fully human monoclonal antibody, which is used to address conditions such as myasthenia gravis, thyroid eye disease and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy.
In March, Immunovant announced the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had issued a patent for IMVT-1402, with claims that include its method of use in treating autoimmune diseases and manufacturing techniques.
In addition to Armistice Capital, other institutional investors have boosted their holdings of Immunovant in recent months. Alpine Global Management LLC added 484,332 in the first quarter of 2024, a more than 34% increase, to own 1,882,704 shares of Immunovant’s stock.
Vanguard Group Inc. also grew its position in Immunovant in the first quarter, raising its stake in the company 11.2% after purchasing 650,506 shares of stock. As of the Sept. 30 13-F filing date, Vanguard owned 6,658,800 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, according to Nasdaq.
Beyond Biotech-Related Therapies
In addition to biopharmaceutical sector companies, institutional investors have expressed an interest in a number of organizations that provide other types of medically related items this year — such as Dentsply Sirona Inc.
The Charlotte, North Carolina-headquartered company manufactures and sells dental products and technologies — including connected technology, essential dental, orthodontic and implant solutions. The dental equipment Dentsply Sirona offers ranges from comprising imaging equipment to mixing machines and porcelain furnaces — plus technologies to support dental restorations, such as intraoral scanners and 3-D printers.
Several analysts have given Dentsply Sirona’s stock a buy rating in recent months. According to MarketBeat, Needham & Company LLC issued the rating on Oct. 25, followed by StockNews.com on Nov. 6. ISI gave Dentsply Sirona’s stock an outperform rating on Oct. 8.
In the second quarter of 2024, First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Dentsply Sirona with the purchase of 3,283,965 shares of the company’s stock. The 33.6% increase in ownership left the investment firm with a total of 13,069,900 shares.
Dimensional Fund Advisors LP also added more shares of the company in the second quarter, increasing its holdings by 42%. Dimensional Fund’s purchase of 1,308,411 shares, MarketBeat said — which resulted in it owning 4,420,445 shares of Dentsply Sirona stock.
National Bank of Canada FI also obtained additional shares of the medical instruments company’s stock in the second quarter of the year, growing its ownership by more than 684% to 876,400 shares with its purchase of 764,700 shares.
Armistice Capital has also expanded its stake in Dentsply Sirona. The hedge fund bought 550,945 more shares of the company’s stock in the second quarter — a more than 31% increase in ownership, bringing its total holdings to 2,298,000 shares.Per Nasdaq, Armistice Capital increased its holdings by 15% in the most recent quarter and now owns 2,646,772 shares of Dentsply Sirona. As of Nov. 18, hedge funds and other institutional investors held more than 95% of the global medical instruments supplier’s stock, according to MarketBeat.