Wasatch Global Investors, an asset management company, released its “Wasatch Small Cap Growth Strategy” third-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Small-cap equities experienced volatility in the third quarter but ultimately achieved solid gains. In July, they rose sharply due to optimism about a potential soft landing for the U.S. economy and anticipated interest-rate cuts. In September, the Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2020. This environment led investors to shift their focus from mega-cap technology stocks to small-cap equities. Against this backdrop, the strategy gained 9.45%, outperforming the benchmark Russell 2000® Growth Index, which was up 8.41%. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.
Wasatch Small Cap Growth Strategy highlighted stocks like Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP), in the third quarter 2024 investor letter. Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) is a clinical research-based drug and medical device development services provider. The one-month return of Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) was -4.50%, and its shares gained 13.49% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On January 2, 2025, Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) stock closed at $334.75 per share with a market capitalization of $10.405 billion.
Wasatch Small Cap Growth Strategy stated the following regarding Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Another significant detractor was Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP). Medpace is a contract research organization (CRO) supplying clinical development services to small biotech businesses. In its most recent quarterly report, Medpace reported results below expectations. New business wins were lower than anticipated due to the general biotech funding environment and a few client-specific cancellations. As a result, the stock gave up some ground this quarter. However, nothing has changed in our long-term working thesis. We continue to believe the firm has a long runway for growth as biotech innovation pushes forth and more biotech firms turn to Medpace for development services.”
A researcher analyzing a clinical trial data sample in a laboratory.
Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 41 hedge fund portfolios held Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) at the end of the third quarter which was 37 in the previous quarter. Medpace Holdings, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:MEDP) third quarter revenue was $533.3 million, up 8.3% year-over-year. While we acknowledge the potential of Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
In another article, we discussed Medpace Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MEDP) and shared Giverny Capital Asset Management’s views on the company. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q3 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.