Pinebridge Investments L.P. Trims Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Pinebridge Investments L.P. lowered its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 73.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,448 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 39,692 shares during the quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,818,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.3% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $900,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Strategic Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,807,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 3,603 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.0 %

VRTX opened at $492.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $489.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $466.12. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The stock has a market cap of $126.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -223.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on VRTX. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $514.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 67,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,805,286.70. This represents a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.