Top Stocks With Insider Buying, Buybacks

Updated from 7:01 a.m. EDT

Part of the philosophy of Stockpickr is to follow in the footsteps of smart people. This could mean a few different things.

First, it could mean piggybacking great investors like Warren Buffett or George Soros. Other times it means buying what the CEOs, employees and directors of a company are buying. These are people who know the intimate details of their companies far better than you or me.

The perfect setup is when one of these company insiders or an entire board (in the case of a stock buyback) are buying shares at the same time that some smart savvy investors are as well.

Each Thursday we update the Stockpickr Top 10 Insider Purchases and Buybacks portfolio, featuring the stocks of the week that had either big insider purchases or newly announced buybacks as well as "smart money" accumulating shares.

Endo Pharmaceuticals ENDP makes this week's portfolio. The Chadds Ford, Pa.-based company last week announced a $750 million stock-buyback program. The drugmaker specializes in products that treat and manage pain.

In February, the company reported a solid rise in fourth-quarter results, beating Wall Street profit expectations, as well as raising its full-year top- and bottom-line guidance. It's also good to see that analysts at Robert W Baird reiterate their outperform rating and increase their price target for the stock, from $40 to $45.

We also like to see that Duquesne Capital is bullish on Endo. Among the $4 billion investment fund's newest positions are Qualcomm QCOM and St. Jude Medical STJ.

Moore Capital is another noteworthy group of hedge funds that like Endo. The group's signature Moore Global Investments fund is run by famed trader Louis Bacon, who recently opened positions in CA CA and Teradata TDC.

So with Endo Pharma, we have a buyback, solid earnings expectations, an outperform rating with increased price targets and two well-known investors in the stock. It may be time to take a closer look.

Next on the list is Wind River Systems WIND, which last week announced a new $50 million buyback plan. The software company, headquartered in Alameda, Calif., recently completed its previous repurchase plan, which was authorized in June of 2007. Under this plan, the company bought back about 6.8 million shares for a total of $50 million.

Wind River reported fourth-quarter results on March 6 that showed an 11% jump in revenue to $84.3 million. It next reports earnings May 29.