Many Leading funds filed forms 13-D and 13-G with the SEC this week, December 19th through 22nd, indicating that they had amended their ownership in U.S. traded public companies. The forms are required to be filed within ten days, so the institutions traded these shares sometime after the first week of December. Also, we have included here SEC Form 4 filings by Institutions that are considered corporate insiders by virtue of their holding more than 10% ownership, and in many cases having representation on the Board of Directors. Furthermore, in this article, we have included notable transaction by venture capital firms. The following are the most notable filings this week (for more info on Forms 13-D and 13-G, and how to interpret that, please refer to the end of this article):
Mosaic Inc. (MOS): The Mosaic Company is one of the world's leading producers and marketers of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients for the global agriculture industry. Temasek Holdings, the government of Singapore's $157 billion investment company, one of the many sovereign wealth funds, filed Form SC 13G with the SEC on Tuesday, indicating that it holds 17.9 million shares. This is an increase from the 0.1 million shares that Temasek reported holding in its most recent 13-F Q3 filing, making them the largest institutional holder of MOS shares, ahead of 2nd place Wellington Management that holds 17.6 million or 5.7% of the outstanding shares. MOS has been weak this year, down almost 35% YTD, and trades at 8-9 forward P/E compared to the 11.6 average for its peers in the fertilizer group, while earnings are projected to increase from $4.38 in 2010 to $5.89 at an annual growth rate of 15.8%.
Inhibitex Inc. (INHX): INHX develops differentiated anti-infective products to prevent and treat serious viral and bacterial infections, including primarily shingles and chronic infections caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV). On Wednesday, New York-based shareholder activist hedge fund QVT Financial, with over $1.2 billion in equity assets under management, filed Form SC 13G/A indicating that they now hold 4.0 million shares or 4.9% of the outstanding shares, a decrease of 3.7 million from the 7.7 million shares that they held at the time of their 13-F Q3 filing last month. This still puts them in 3rd place in terms of the largest institutional holders of INHX, behind Fidelity Investments (10.4 million shares) and NEA Management Co. (8.8 million shares). INHX shares have been in a strong surge since the company reported on November 4th the positive top-line safety and anti-viral data from the first cohort of its ongoing clinical trial of INX-189 in hepatitis C, rising as high as four-fold to the peak above $16 before dropping last Friday in the $10 range.
Intuit Inc. (INTU): INTU provides business and financial management software and services for businesses, accounting professionals and consumers in the U.S., Canada, India, Singapore and the U.K. On Wednesday, San Diego-based shareholder activist value-oriented hedge fund manager Relational Investors, with $4.6 billion in equity assets under management per their latest 13-F Q3 filing, filed SEC Form 4 indicating they it sold 1.7 million shares for $90.3 million, ending with 3.9 million or 1.3% of the outstanding shares. INTU trades at 16 forward P/E and 6.7 P/B compared to the averages of 34.1 and 3.8 for its peers in the computer software group, while earnings are projected to increase at a strong 15.0% growth rate from $2.51 in 2011 to $3.32 in 2013.
Endocyte Inc. (ECYT): ECYT develops targeted therapies using small molecule drug conjugates for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. Insiders currently hold 5.7 million or 15.9% of outstanding shares. On Thursday, CA-based venture capital firm Sanderling Venture Partners that specializes in investing in biotech companies filed SEC Forms 4 indicating that they purchased an additional 440,000 shares for $1.4 million, increasing their ownership to 4.5 million shares. Insiders have been on a buying spree at ECYT recently, as five insiders together reported purchasing an additional 226,000 shares over the past five trading days, including Director Douglas Bailey (125,000 shares), Director Fred Middleton, also a Managing Director at Sanderling Ventures (75,000 shares), Director John Aplin (20,000 shares), VP of Research Christopher Leamon (5,000 shares) and Chief Science Officer Philip Low (1,000 shares). ECYT shares are among this month's strongest movers to the downside (down 67% so far), after the company announced last Tuesday the results of supplemental analyses of its phase 2b PRECEDENT trial. The heavy insider buying is particularly notable in this context as it may signifies that five corporate and an institutional insider through their buying of company shares seem to think that the selling is overdone here, portending that we may be near a bottom.
Orexigen Therapeutics (OREX): OREX develops pharmaceuticals by combining various generic drugs to treat central nervous system disorders, including obesity. On Thursday, Domain Associates, a venture capital firm with an exclusive focus on life sciences, and with $2.4 billion assets under management, filed SEC Form 4 indicating that it purchased 469,147 shares for $0.7 million, ending with 3.0 million shares. OREX shares are trading near their lows, down 80% for the year, after a huge 72% drop on February 1st when the company announced that the FDA issued a Complete Response to their New Drug Application (NDA) for Contrave for the management of obesity.
Sunrise Senior Living (SRZ): SRZ IS provider of assisted and independent senior living services in 319 communities in the U.S., Canada and U.K. On Wednesday, Dallas-based hedge fund manager Carlson Capital, with $5.9 billion in equity assets under management per their 13-F Q3 filing, filed SEC Form 4 indicating that it purchased 1.7 million shares for $194.4 million, added to the 5.4 million shares at the time of its 13-F Q3 filing.
Credit: Fundamental data in this article were based on SEC filings, I-Metrix® by Edgar Online®, Zacks Investment Research, Thomson Reuters and Briefing.com. The information and data is believed to be accurate, but no guarantees or representations are made.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.
Disclaimer: Material presented here is for informational purposes only. Nothing in this article should be taken as a solicitation to purchase or sell securities. Before buying or selling any stock you should do your own research and reach your own conclusion. Further, these are our 'opinions' and we may be wrong. We may have positions in securities mentioned in this article. You should take this into consideration before acting on any advice given in this article. If this makes you uncomfortable, then do not listen to our thoughts and opinions. The contents of this article do not take into consideration your individual investment objectives so consult with your own financial adviser before making an investment decision. Investing includes certain risks including loss of principal.
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