Viking Global leader Andreas Halvorsen (Trades, Portfolio) disclosed a position in PROCEPT BioRobotics Corp. (PRCT, Financial) earlier this week, seeing a value opportunity in a newly public company.
In addition to considering cyclical and secular industry trends, the guru's Connecticut-based hedge fund selects stocks based on its understanding of the business' fundamentals and management team. Halvorsen was a former protégé of Tiger Management's Julian Robertson (Trades, Portfolio).
According to GuruFocus Real-Time Picks, a Premium feature, Halvorsen invested in 400,000 shares of the Redwood City, California-based company on Sept. 17, dedicating 0.05% of the equity portfolio to the holding. The stock traded for an average price of $40 per share on the day of the transaction.
The medical device manufacturer, which develops autonomous robots to conduct minimally invasive surgical procedures in the urology arena, has a $1.6 billion market cap; its shares were trading around $37.87 on Wednesday with a price-sales ratio of 167.74.
Since its initial public offering on Sept. 15, the stock has declined around 7%.
Founded in 2007, the company strives to offer less invasive options to traditional treatment methods. PROCEPT BioRobotics delivers Aquablation therapy through its AquaBeam Robotics System, which is used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia. The technology combines real-time, multidimensional imaging with personalized treatment planning, automated robotics and heat-free water jet ablation to quickly and precisely remove the effected prostate tissue.
PROCEPT BioRobotics priced its 6.5 million-share offering at $25 each on Sept. 14. As is customary, underwriters were offered a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 983,400 shares.
The IPO, which generated approximately $188.5 million in gross proceeds, closed on Sept. 21.
Halvorsen is currently the only guru invested in the stock with a 0.95% holding.
Portfolio composition
Halvorsen’s $32.93 billion equity portfolio, which was composed of 87 stocks as of the end of the second quarter, is largely invested in the health care and technology sectors.
Other medical devices and instruments companies Viking Global had positions in as of June 30 included Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX, Financial), Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. (ZBH, Financial), Insulet Corp. (PODD, Financial), Align Technology Inc. (ALGN, Financial) and AdaptHealth Corp. (AHCO, Financial).
