Is Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ASTX) Going to Burn These Hedge Funds?

Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX) was in 16 hedge funds’ portfolio at the end of March. ASTX investors should be aware of an increase in hedge fund interest in recent months. There were 9 hedge funds in our database with ASTX holdings at the end of the previous quarter.

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Consequently, we’re going to take a peek at the latest action surrounding Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX).

What have hedge funds been doing with Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX)?

In preparation for this quarter, a total of 16 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 78% from the previous quarter. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of noteworthy hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings substantially.

According to our comprehensive database, Perceptive Advisors, managed by Joseph Edelman, holds the biggest position in Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX). Perceptive Advisors has a $9.3 million position in the stock, comprising 1.1% of its 13F portfolio. Sitting at the No. 2 spot is Samuel Isaly of OrbiMed Advisors, with a $6.5 million call position; the fund has 0.2% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining peers that hold long positions include Samuel Isaly’s OrbiMed Advisors, SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management and Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management.

As industrywide interest jumped, key money managers have been driving this bullishness. OrbiMed Advisors, managed by Samuel Isaly, created the most valuable call position in Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX). OrbiMed Advisors had 6.5 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Samuel Isaly’s OrbiMed Advisors also made a $5.2 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new ASTX investors: SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management, Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management, and Israel Englander’s Millennium Management.

What do corporate executives and insiders think about Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX)?

Bullish insider trading is particularly usable when the company in focus has experienced transactions within the past 180 days. Over the latest 180-day time period, Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 3 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).

Let’s go over hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Astex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTX). These stocks are Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIGL), Keryx Biopharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:KERX), Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp. (NASDAQ:RPTP), Endocyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECYT), and Kythera Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:KYTH). This group of stocks belong to the drug manufacturers – major industry and their market caps resemble ASTX’s market cap.