BB Biotech AG

Sector specialist with high distribution policy

9 February 2016

BB Biotech (BION) seeks to achieve long-term capital growth by investing in fast-growing biotech companies. A discount management programme adopted in 2012 allows it to return 5% of its value each year as a capital distribution, resulting in an unusually high yield (6.4% at 3 February) for a fund investing in a low-yielding sector. Biotech has performed strongly and BION has beaten the benchmark NASDAQ Biotech index in three of the last five years, although it has underperformed in a sharp sell-off since the start of 2016. The fund invests globally and across the size spectrum, with a concentrated portfolio heavily weighted towards 5-8 core holdings. It is currently focused more on primary care end-markets, where the lower-cost, higher-volume model is less affected by political pressure on pricing. MORE »

Profit from clinical innovation

11 March 2015

BB Biotech AG (BION) is a Swiss specialist biotech investment company, with a bias towards mid-sized and larger companies generating revenues. The company targets double-digit annual returns and outperformed its NASDAQ Biotech benchmark in 2014 in what was a very strong year for the sector, posting a total return (in Swiss francs) of 75.1% versus 50.3% for the index. Inclusion in the Stoxx Europe 600 index from December 2014 reflects strong capital performance and increased liquidity. This will increase the fund’s visibility to investors, while buying from passive funds may have helped the discount to narrow to its current level of c 14%. MORE »

Double-digit returns with a double-digit discount

21 July 2014

BB Biotech AG (BION) is a Swiss-based investment company specialising in the biotechnology sector, with a focus on mid-sized and larger companies that are already generating revenues. Exposure to success stories such as Gilead, whose hepatitis C treatment Sovaldi became a record seller on its introduction earlier this year, has seen the portfolio achieve annualised gains of more than 20% over five years, yet the discount to NAV remains wide, at 20% (double the peer group average excluding BION). A 5% annual distribution policy means BION is the only biotech specialist trust with a yield, equivalent to 4.5% at 16 July. MORE »