Isaly steps down from OrbiMed and Worldwide Healthcare Trust
Veteran US biotech analyst and OrbiMed Capital founder Samuel Isaly has stepped down from his role as Managing Partner and separately as a director of UK-listed Worldwide Healthcare Trust WWH, which is managed by OrbiMed alongside Biotech Growth Trust BIOG. Isaly will be replaced at the New York-based hedge fund giant by a management committee composed of Sven Borho, Carl Gordon, and Jonathan Silverstein. The move, which follows allegations of sexual harassment at the firm, may create some short-term uncertainty for the two UK healthcare investment trusts. However, portfolio management will remain with OrbiMed and, in the opinion of the investment trust specialists at QuotedData, the changes seem unlikely to affect the trust’s performance, given OrbiMed’s substantial team of analysts and venture professionals.
Stock price performance for both trusts has been exceptionally good – especially over the past five years. However, short term performance of these and other UK-listed healthcare specialist trusts has been impacted months by the recent roughly 30% stock price fall at Celgene, which has been a long term core holding, following a major clinical development setback with a late-stage product for Crohn’s disease. Investors should watch for the portfolio company news going into a key investment conference for the biotech sector in early January, which has traditionally generated positive updates.
WWH : Isaly steps down from OrbiMed and Worldwide Healthcare Trust