Allergan AGN spiked Friday after it was reported that 13 hedge funds established new positions in the company in the second quarter, while nine added to their stake.
A further six funds boosted their position in the company, while 11 cut their stakes, according to BNK Invest.
Allergan is subject of a hostile takeover bid by Valeant Pharmaceuticals VRX and activist investor William Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management LP.
The Securities and Exchange Commission launched a preliminary investigation recently into whether the bid violates insider trading laws, according to reports Thursday.
Ackman issued a statement Friday saying there's "nothing illegal, unethical or improper" in his actions regarding Allergan.
BKN noted that funds operated by Advisory Research and Allstate exited their positions in Allergan during the second quarter, and the total number of Allergan shares held by hedge funds in the period actually fell by more than 19 percent.
Valeant's latest offer for Allergan is $164.16 per share in cash and Valeant stock.
Allergan was down 1.39 percent, trading recently at $157.76 per share.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
