While the broader indexes hit new lows in July, the end-of-Q1 holdings of some Pro investors managed to stay out of the red.  The common theme for many of these holdings is healthcare, particularly biotech, which has taken the place at the top of the leaderboard occupied by the once strong commodity names that pulled back in July.

The end-of-Q1 holdings of hedge fund Conus Partners have seen their gains fueled by stocks like STAAR Surgical (STAA), a maker of implantable contact lens and other opthamalic products, cardiovascular disease-focused biotech CV Therapeutics (CVTX), and Symyx Technologies (SYMX), an R&D integration specialist that helps biotechs manage research data.

Sectoral Asset Management, a Montral-based investment advisor with a healthcare focus, has had similar success.  Biotechs Myriad Genetics (MYGN), Amgen (AMGN), and Alexion Pharmaceuticals (ALXN) have all performed well.

Finally, Baker Brothers, which is headed by brothers Julian and Felix Baker and focuses exclusively on life sciences companies, has seen its focus serve it well over the last month.  neurological disorder-focused biotech Acorda Therapeutics (ACOR), Myriad Genetics, and cancer-focused biotech Allos Therapeutics (ALTH) have all outperformed.

There haven’t been many places to hide in this market, but these biotech names have done well.  Only time will tell if they can continue to hold up.

After a number of requests, we’ve rolled out a small, new feature that many of you will enjoy.

We often get asked, “how can I find out who is tracking me on tickerspy?”  Now you can by going to your “tracked by” page, which is linked off your My tickerspy page.  Nobody tracking you yet?  Get active on tickerspy, build a track record, and it’s only a matter of time that people will want to follow your moves.

So go check it out, if you want to see who has been following your moves on tickerspy.  Let us know if you have any feedback or questions.

Life can be tough for the individual investor. Sometimes it seems like you are sifting through the same names day after day and nothing seems enticing. At times like this, a new idea to explore can be just what the doctor ordered.

Our members have told us that one of their favorite ways to generate new ideas is by exploring our 2,000 or so Pro portfolios.  A peek at a couple of Pros shows the wide variety of strategies and stocks represented.

For example, there’s Orrell Capital Management, whose portfolio of gold stocks has held up very well of late, as a weak dollar and bearish fears have sent investors looking for the safety of gold.  Orrell runs a gold-focused mutual fund, the OCM Gold fund (OCMGX), and the firm’s top holding’s at the end of Q1 included Yamana Gold (AUY), Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM), and Kinross Gold (KGC).  A look at Orrell’s portfolio offers up ideas from a gold expert for anyone interested in gold.

Pursuing a completely different strategy is Caymus Capital Partners, “a market-neutral energy equity fund,” according to Forbes.  The firm’s founders have an energy industry pedigree.  The Pro’s holdings have seen big gains thanks to its exposure to energy names like Comstock Resources (CRK), GMX Resources (GMXR), and Swift Energy (SFY).  Caymus’ portfolio show its expertise in energy and is full of energy names to explore for the interested investor.

Stay tuned to tickerspy for more upgrades coming soon that will make idea generation even easier.

tickerspy will be unavailable for most of Saturday, July 5th, for a period of planned maintenance. We apologize for the inconvenience. Have a great holiday!

After the week we’ve had on Wall Street, the only silver lining might be that it’s shorter than usual.

But which tickerspy portfolios are thriving today, even as the market undergoes another tumultuous day?

As of this writing, the top member portfolio on our Ideas & Research page belongs to bluebeard.  With a short position in Nvidia (NVDA), the portfolio is benefiting from that stock’s plunge on a lowered outlook and product defects.

Meanwhile, a dip in crude prices is offering a respite for beleaguered airline stocks, and boosting airline-focused portfolios from, jwixted, Pozhil, and kranch.  All of these portfolios include AMR (AMR), Continental (CAL), Delta (DAL), Jetblue (JBLU), Southwest (LUV), and UAL (UAUA).

Other top portfolios include that of abs7224a, which is jumping on big gains from Chindex (CHDX) and Converted Organics (COIN).  A portfolio from multibillionaire is up on a big move from Middlebrook Pharmaceuticals (MBRK).