Here’s Why Investors Are Watching Sangamo Biosciences, GNC Holdings, and Three Other Stocks Today

Markets are mixed on Wednesday as investors get ready to digest a flurry of earnings, and await Federal Reserve’s summary of commentary of the current economic condition, also known as the “Beige Book”.

Among the stocks that are in the spotlight this morning are Sangamo Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMO), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT),  Marinus Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:MRNS), GNC Holdings Inc (NYSE:GNC), and Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS). In this article, we will take a look at the latest activity surrounding these stocks, and will assess the 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 more details about our small-cap strategy).

Aleph Studio/Shutterstock.com

Sangamo’s Vice President Resigns

Sangamo Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMO) is making headlines after the company disclosed in a SEC filing that its Executive Vice President Geoffrey Nichol, M.B. is stepping down, effective October 25. The company’s stock hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday. Earlier this week, the clinical stage biopharmaceutical company said it will participate in a scientific conference conducted by European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy and the National Hemophilia Foundation’s 13th Workshop on Novel Technologies and Gene Transfer for Hemophilia in this month. The stock has lost over 57% so far this year. A total of 20 funds from our database were bullish on Sangamo Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGMO) at the end of the second quarter.

Abbott Laboratories Beats Estimates

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) is in the spotlight today after the company reported third-quarter results that beat analysts’ forecast. The Illinois-based healthcare company earned $0.59 a share on revenue of $5.30 billion revenue, above the expected EPS of $0.58 and revenue of $5.29 billion. For the full fiscal 2016, the company now expects EPS of $2.19 to $2.21, compared to the previous $2.14-$2.24 range and the consensus estimate of $2.20. Abbott’s CEO Miles White said in a statement that strong performance in sectors of established pharmaceuticals and medical devices drove sales in the quarter, and the company is on track to meet its financial targets it set at the start of the year. At the end of the second quarter, 47 funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned $1.61 billion worth of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) shares.

We will discuss why Marinus, GNC Holdings, and Northern Trust are trending today on the next page.