Why a Fund Dumped a $26 Million Position in a Stock Up 129% This Past Year

On November 13, Dallas-based Anson Funds Management disclosed it sold out of Perpetua Resources (NASDAQ:PPTA), liquidating 2.15 million worth an estimated $26.1 million.

What Happened

Anson Funds Management reported a complete sale of its stake in Perpetua Resources (NASDAQ:PPTA), removing the position from its portfolio in the third quarter. The fund liquidated 2.15 million shares, with the transaction’s estimated value at $26.1 million based on quarterly average pricing. The disclosure was made in an SEC filing dated November 13.

What Else to Know

Perpetua Resources had been 3.8% of its 13F AUM in the previous quarter.

Top holdings after the filing:

• NASDAQ:QUBT: $98.93 million (11.2% of AUM)
• NASDAQ:ASST: $88.13 million (10.0% of AUM)
• NASDAQ:ORBS: $75.21 million (8.5% of AUM)
• NASDAQ:SLMT: $66.67 million (7.6% of AUM)
• NASDAQ:MTCH: $48.49 million (5.5% of AUM)

As of Thursday, shares of Perpetua Resources were priced at $24.21, up a staggering 129% over the past year and vastly outperforming the S&P 500, which is up about 16% in the same period.

Company Overview

Metric	Value
Price (as of Thursday)	$24.21
Market capitalization	$2.95 billion
Net income (TTM)	($44.29 million)

Company Snapshot

• Perpetua Resources engages in mineral exploration, focusing on gold, silver, and antimony, with its principal asset being the Stibnite gold project in Idaho.
• The company operates a resource development model, generating revenue through the discovery, advancement, and potential extraction of precious and strategic metals.
• It serves industrial customers and commodity markets seeking precious metals and antimony, with a focus on U.S.-based supply chains.

Perpetua Resources is a U.S.-based mineral exploration company specializing in gold, silver, and antimony, anchored by its 100% ownership of the Stibnite gold project in Idaho. Its business model centers on developing domestic sources of strategic metals for industrial and national supply chain needs.

Foolish Take

Perpetua stock has surged roughly 129% over the past year, buoyed by major project milestones at the Stibnite Gold Project. And since a June and July equity offering, Perpetua has raised hundreds of millions of dollars, broken ground, and advanced toward a potential construction decision tied to as much as $2.0 billion in proposed U.S. EXIM financing (the official U.S. export credit agency). That progress is real and strategically important, but it also changes the risk profile.

Perpetua remains pre-revenue, capital-intensive, and dependent on execution across permitting, financing, and construction timelines. After October’s strategic investments and additional equity raises, dilution risk, financing complexity, and timeline sensitivity all increased. For a diversified portfolio, that makes a full exit a rational capital allocation decision, not a bearish call on the asset. Also important to note, Perpetua stock has been pretty volatile in the last few weeks, falling about 17% in less than a month alone -- and it saw an even steeper 25% fall in October. That type of risk-reward should certainly be top of mind for a fund looking to recalibrate.

Glossary

13F reportable assets: Assets that institutional investment managers must disclose quarterly to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), showing their U.S. equity holdings.

AUM (Assets under management): The total market value of investments managed by a fund or investment firm.

Position: The amount of a particular security or asset held in a portfolio.

Liquidated: The process of selling off a position or asset for cash, fully or partially.

Stake: The ownership interest or share held in a company by an investor or fund.

Quarterly average pricing: The average price of a security over a specific quarter, used for estimating transaction values.

Outperforming: Achieving a higher return than a benchmark or comparable index over a given period.

Resource development model: A business approach focused on discovering, advancing, and extracting natural resources for profit.

Strategic metals: Metals considered important for industrial, technological, or defense applications, often with limited supply sources.

TTM: The 12-month period ending with the most recent quarterly report.

Jonathan Ponciano has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Match Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.