Why Fitbit, Transocean and 3 Other Stocks are Gaining Ground Today

The U.S markets are making noise on Thursday amid payroll processor ADP reporting that private employers added 172,000 jobs in June, better than the forecasts of 160,000 jobs. That has sent all three major indexes well into green as we approach midday.

Among the individual stocks that are gaining ground today we’ve found Hain Celestial Group Inc (NASDAQ:HAIN), Birks Group Inc (NYSEMKT:BGI), Transocean LTD (NYSE:RIG), Fitbit Inc (NYSE:FIT) and SemiLEDs Corporation (NASDAQ:LEDS). Let’s find out why these stocks are in the good graces of investors today and check out what hedge funds think about each of them.

Through extensive research, we have determined that the due diligence that hedge funds employ, as well as their long-term focus makes them perfect targets to emulate. However, the results of our analysis have also showed that the small-cap picks of these funds can generate much better returns, with the 15 most popular small-cap stocks beating the market by an average of 95 basis points per month (read more details here).

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Fitbit Trackers to be Used in Major Cancer Study

Shares of Fitbit Inc (NYSE:FIT) continue to gain value following the company’s announcement of its partnership with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for the purpose of conducting research to determine whether exercise helps decrease the recurrence of breast cancer. Fitbit’s fitness trackers will be used in the six-year-long study, which is scheduled to start in August and will involve 3,200 women. Fitbit trackers will help the researchers to track and monitor the activity of the participants to ensure the most accurate study results. At the end of the first quarter, 30 hedge funds in our database were long in Fitbit Inc (NYSE:FIT), the shares of which are up by 4% today.

Hain Celestial Rising on Potential Merger or Acquisition

Hain Celestial Group Inc (NASDAQ:HAIN)’s stock has surged by more than 9% today as speculation regarding its possible buyout strengthened after French food company Danone announced the acquisition of WhiteWave Foods today. New York-based organic and natural foods company Hain Celestial has been hurt by large grocers penetrating the market with their own natural food brands. This shift in the market has made Hain Celestial and other such food companies vulnerable to mergers.

Our database shows that 19 hedge funds that we track were bullish on Hain Celestial Group Inc (NASDAQ:HAIN) as of the end of the first quarter, down heavily from 31 funds a quarter earlier. Philippe Laffont’s Coatue Management owns about 1.03 million shares of the company as of March 31.

On the next page we’ll look into why Transocean, Birks Group and SemiLEDs are gaining ground today.