Is Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS) worth your attention right now? Investors who are in the know are buying. The number of long hedge fund bets moved up by 1 lately.
To the average investor, there are plenty of gauges investors can use to watch publicly traded companies. A couple of the most under-the-radar are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our studies have shown that, historically, those who follow the best picks of the best money managers can trounce the broader indices by a superb margin (see just how much).
Equally as important, optimistic insider trading sentiment is a second way to break down the world of equities. Obviously, there are plenty of reasons for a bullish insider to get rid of shares of his or her company, but only one, very clear reason why they would behave bullishly. Various academic studies have demonstrated the useful potential of this tactic if shareholders understand what to do (learn more here).
Now, let’s take a gander at the key action encompassing Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS).
How have hedgies been trading Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS)?
At the end of the first quarter, a total of 13 of the hedge funds we track were long in this stock, a change of 8% from one quarter earlier. With the smart money’s capital changing hands, there exists an “upper tier” of key hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings meaningfully.
According to our comprehensive database, Redmile Group, managed by Jeremy Green, holds the largest position in Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS). Redmile Group has a $14 million position in the stock, comprising 2.6% of its 13F portfolio. On Redmile Group’s heels is William Leland Edwards of Palo Alto Investors, with a $10.9 million position; 1.3% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Other hedgies that are bullish include Joseph Edelman’s Perceptive Advisors, Peter S. Park’s Park West Asset Management and Jim Simons’s Renaissance Technologies.
As aggregate interest increased, some big names have jumped into Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS) headfirst. Catapult Capital Management, managed by Israel Englander, established the biggest position in Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS). Catapult Capital Management had 2.8 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. Israel Englander’s Millennium Management also initiated a $2.1 million position during the quarter. The following funds were also among the new CPTS investors: David Moradi’s Anthion Management and Donald Chiboucis’s Columbus Circle Investors.
What do corporate executives and insiders think about Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS)?
Insider buying is best served when the company we’re looking at has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the latest 180-day time frame, Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS) has seen zero unique insiders buying, and 4 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS). These stocks are Endologix, Inc. (NASDAQ:ELGX), Luminex Corporation (NASDAQ:LMNX), ICU Medical, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ICUI), Cantel Medical Corp. (NYSE:CMN), and Tornier N.V. (NASDAQ:TRNX). This group of stocks belong to the medical instruments & supplies industry and their market caps are closest to CPTS’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| Endologix, Inc. (NASDAQ:ELGX) | 14 | 0 | 5 |
| Luminex Corporation (NASDAQ:LMNX) | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| ICU Medical, Incorporated (NASDAQ:ICUI) | 14 | 0 | 2 |
| Cantel Medical Corp. (NYSE:CMN) | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| Tornier N.V. (NASDAQ:TRNX) | 14 | 0 | 5 |
With the returns exhibited by our studies, everyday investors must always monitor hedge fund and insider trading sentiment, and Conceptus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPTS) shareholders fit into this picture quite nicely.
