10 Pharmaceutical Stocks to Buy According to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments

In this article, we examined Efrem Kamen’s portfolio management strategy and approach to investing in pharmaceutical stocks. We also reviewed the top 10 pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments. You can skip our detailed discussion about Efrem Kamen’s investment philosophy and portfolio management strategies and jump directly to 5 Pharmaceutical Stocks to Buy According to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments.

Efrem Kamen, founder and managing member of Pura Vida Investments, seeks to achieve market-beating returns using a biotech and healthcare-centric perspective. His healthcare-focused investment firm, which he established in 2012 with Dr. Frank Litvack, has seen tremendous success in the past few years, with 13F portfolio value surging from around $1 billion in 2020 to $3.2 billion as of September 2021. Efrem Kamen’s long-short equity investment firm capitalizes on both short and long-term market movements. He earned a B.A. in Economics and Linguistics from Columbia College, New York

Efrem Kamen has decades of investing experience in the healthcare sector. His firm’s investments range from biotechnology to medical technology, genomics instruments, and bio-therapeutics. Prior to founding Pura Vida Investments, Efrem worked as a portfolio manager and analyst at numerous investment firms including Waterfront Capital Partners, Diamondback Capital Management, and Citadel Investment Group. 

As of September, Pura Vida Investments had 274 long or short stock positions in its 13F portfolio, and we decided to concentrate on the top 10 pharmaceutical stocks it owns. These pharmaceutical stocks include Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER), Pulmonx Corporation (NASDAQ:LUNG), ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI), Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR), and OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX). 

Unlike well-established large-cap stocks such as UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO), Pura Vida Investments seeks to find opportunities in early-stage companies like ViewRay, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRAY) and Establishment Labs Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:ESTA). 

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Our Methodology

We used Pura Vida Investments’ 13F portfolio for the third quarter to identify the below-mentioned stocks.

10 Pharmaceutical Stocks to Buy According to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments

10. Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 11

Efrem Kamen’s healthcare-focused investment firm saw the dip in the share price of Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER) as a buying opportunity. During the third quarter, the firm boosted its existing position in the company by 239%  to 0.91% of the entire portfolio. Shares of Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER) have fallen 53% year-to-date.

The market analysts are also seeing the drop in Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER) shares as an attractive entry point. Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER) recently received an Outperform rating from Cowen while Morgan Stanley set its price target at $55.

As of September, Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER) was in 11 hedge funds’ portfolios, according to data tracked by Insider Monkey. Lee Ainslie’s Maverick Capital and Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments were among the leading stakeholders in Seer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SEER). 

9. Pulmonx Corporation (NASDAQ:LUNG)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 21

Efrem Kamen’s investment firm added significantly to its existing position in Pulmonx Corporation (NASDAQ:LUNG) during the September quarter. Shares of a minimally invasive medical devices provider lost almost half of their value so far this year.

Despite the selloff, the company looks financially sound. Pulmonx Corporation (NASDAQ:LUNG) topped revenue and earnings expectations for the third quarter by $0.08 million and $0.09 per share, respectively. Moreover, Pulmonx Corporation (NASDAQ:LUNG) expects full-year revenue in the range of $49 to $51 million, representing roughly 50% growth from the past year. 

Of the 867 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 21 were bullish about the company. James E. Flynn’s Deerfield Management and Ken Griffin’s Citadel Investment Group were among the leading stakeholders in the company. 

8. ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 31

ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) is one of the long-running pharmaceutical stock holdings of Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments. As of the end of the third quarter, the hedge fund held 134,724 shares of ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI).

ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) is engaged in offering innovative medical products used in infusion therapy and critical care applications. 

In the third quarter, ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) posted $331 million in revenue, up 5% from the past year period. The third-quarter adjusted EBITDA of ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) came in at $71.9 million compared to $62.2 million in the past year quarter.

Like UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO),  ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) is gaining the attention of hedge funds. As of the end of September, 31 hedge funds were bullish on the company, up from 27 in the second quarter. Seth Rosen’s Nitorum Capital is the leading stakeholder in the company with a stake worth $58 million. Jeremy Green’s Redmile Group also held a $52 million position in ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI) at the end of the third quarter. 

7. Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 24

Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR) is one of the top pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments. The health-care-focused hedge fund has been adding significantly to its existing position in Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR) over the past three quarters. The firm’s strategy appears to be working because shares of the company are up 72% in the last twelve months.

Cantor Fitzgerald set Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR) stock price target at $55.00 as the firm believes its comprehensive portfolio of innovative aesthetics solutions for the global market is underappreciated.  

Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR), a provider of laser and other energy-based aesthetic systems, posted third-quarter revenue of $57.4 million, up 47% from the prior-year period. Moreover, its adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter doubled to $5.1 million compared to $2.4 million in the past-year period. On the back of increasing demand, Cutera, Inc. (NASDAQ:CUTR) lifted its full-year 2021 revenue outlook to $228 million from the prior expectations of $221 million.  

6. OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14

Small-cap company OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX) is gaining traction amid the clinical launch of its DetermaIO test, which will strengthen its position in the total available market of $5 billion in precision diagnostics solutions. OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX) generated 65% year-over-year growth in test volume during the third quarter despite the COVID-19 related disruptions. 

Two more metrics used for measuring test adoption also reflect more volume growth in the quarters ahead. These two metrics include a 42% growth in new hospital onboards and a 22% increase in ordering physicians.

Pura Vida Investments left its position unchanged in OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX) during the third quarter. The firm has been holding a position in the company since the end of 2019, according to Insider Monkey data.  

As of the end of the September quarter, the number of long hedge funds’ positions was at 14. Leading stakeholders such as John Overdeck and David Siegel’s Two Sigma Advisors and Samuel Isaly’s OrbiMed Advisors increased their existing stakes in the company during the September quarter. 

Like UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO), OncoCyte Corporation (NASDAQ:OCX) is one of the top pharmaceutical stocks to buy according to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments. 

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Disclosure: None. 10 Pharmaceutical Stocks to Buy According to Efrem Kamen’s Pura Vida Investments is originally published on Insider Monkey.