3. Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) is the third stock on our list of the 10 best genomic stocks to purchase now. The American biotechnology company develops and sells integrated systems for studying genetic variation and biological function. The California-based Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) single handedly deployed a technology that reduced the cost of sequencing a human genome to $1000 in 2014 from $1 million in 2007.
At the end of the second quarter of 2021, 51 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database held stakes amounting to $1.97 billion in Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN).
On September 20, Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) announced that it would open entities in Colombia and Mexico, which would not only focus on key healthcare systems and hospitals, but also support local and nearby Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) partners across Latin America, including countries in the Caribbean, Central American, and South America.
Out of the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, GuardCap Asset Management is the largest stakeholder in Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN), with 1.22 million shares amounting to $580.7 million.
In their Q2 2021 investor letter, RiverPark Funds declared Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) as the market leader in the genomics industry. Here is what they said:
“ILMN shares were our final top contributor for the quarter, rebounding from a decline in March due to the FTC filing a complaint to block the company’s acquisition of Grail. In April, Illumina reported better-than-expected results and a strong outlook. ILMN revenue grew 27%, with Sequencing revenue up 29%, instrument revenue up 123% and consumables up 26%. Adjusted operating margin grew sequentially to 32.1% from 20.9% in 4Q20, significantly exceeding estimates. Management also increased its full-year 2021 revenue growth guidance from its previous 17%-20% growth (we previously wrote we thought it to be conservative) to 25%-28%.
We continue to view the company’s core genomics industry as offering one of the larger total addressable markets that we cover, and ILMN is the clear innovation leader in sequencing and array-based solutions for genetic analysis. With less than 0.02% of humans having been sequenced and 99% of the variants discovered in the genome having not yet been deciphered, Illumina, at only $3.5 billion of TTM revenue, is still in its infancy in what is potentially a greater than $50 billion genetics analysis tools market opportunity. With Illumina’s recent entrance into the potentially even larger liquid biopsy market (early-stage cancer screening via blood samples) through its acquisition of Grail, the company has two large growth opportunities ahead.”
