PACS Group Surges 185% While Major Fund Dramatically Expands Position in Post-Acute Healthcare Leader

2026-01-21 02:05:36

The Big Picture: A $67 Million Bet on Healthcare Scale

A significant shift occurred in the institutional investor landscape when Utah-based Crewe Advisors revealed a major capital deployment into post-acute healthcare. The fund acquired over 1 million shares of PACS Group (NYSE:PACS) during Q4, pushing its total position to 2.1 million shares worth $82.45 million. What makes this move noteworthy is the scale: the position now commands 7.3% of the fund’s 13F assets, firmly establishing it as a core conviction play rather than a tactical trade.

Breaking Down the Investment Decision

In its January 16 SEC filing, Crewe Advisors documented the purchase of 1,035,747 PACS shares valued at approximately $22.72 million based on average quarterly pricing. The quarter-end valuation jumped to $82.45 million, a $67.19 million swing from the prior quarter. This expansion wasn’t driven solely by new capital deployment—it reflected both aggressive buying and substantial price appreciation.

The fund’s commitment to PACS Group now rivals its broad market ETF allocations. Current top five holdings include:

IVV (Vanguard S&P 500): $137.22 million (12.2%)
PACS Group: $82.45 million (7.3%)
SPY (S&P 500 ETF): $68.71 million (6.1%)
IJH (iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap): $61.43 million (5.4%)
IEFA (iShares Core MSCI EAFE): $49.30 million (4.4%)

Why This Company Stands Out

PACS Group operates as a diversified healthcare platform spanning post-acute care facilities, senior living communities, and assisted living operations. The company generated $5.14 billion in revenue (TTM) with $169.04 million in net income, operating at a $6.02 billion market capitalization.

On the operational front, recent third-quarter results revealed $1.34 billion in revenue—a 31% year-over-year increase. Adjusted EBITDA reached $131.5 million, while operating cash flow exceeded $400 million through the first nine months. The company maintains occupancy rates near 95% across mature facilities, substantially outpacing the industry average of approximately 80%.

Market Performance and Valuation Context

As of mid-January, PACS shares traded at $39.37, marking a 184.9% gain over the trailing twelve months. This performance vastly exceeded the S&P 500 by 168 percentage points, yet Crewe Advisors chose to double down rather than lighten exposure—a signal that management views the surge as justified by underlying fundamentals rather than speculative excess.

What This Position Reveals About Fund Strategy

The decision to anchor a material portion of portfolio capital in a single-name healthcare holding signals confidence in secular trends within post-acute care demographics. By maintaining meaningful ETF exposure alongside this concentrated bet, the fund balances growth conviction with portfolio stability. The sizing—large enough to drive absolute returns but not so large as to create portfolio fragility—suggests a measured approach to high-conviction positioning.

This transaction illustrates how institutional capital views PACS Group: not as a momentum play, but as a compounding machine generating sustained cash flows in a defensive growth sector with favorable demographic tailwinds.

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.