Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Bought by Portfolio Design Labs LLC

by · The Markets Daily

Portfolio Design Labs LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX – Free Report) by 123.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,579 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 2,526 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,467 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $12,309,000 after acquiring an additional 3,359 shares in the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% during the third quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 9,092 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,229,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,581,373,000 after purchasing an additional 851,054 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 11.6% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 7,443 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,462,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares during the period. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,893,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on VRTX. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $575.00 price target on the stock. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen increased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $499.12.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This trade represents a 27.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,217,500. The trade was a 12.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,445 shares of company stock worth $2,218,394. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 4.1 %

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $448.01 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $115.38 billion, a PE ratio of -225.13 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $346.29 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $475.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $472.89.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.61 by $0.77. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

(Free Report)

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.

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