Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX is Bellevue Group AG’s 8th Largest Position

Bellevue Group AG raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 6.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 441,610 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,539 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up approximately 4.3% of Bellevue Group AG’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Bellevue Group AG owned about 0.17% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $196,605,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.6% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 53,625 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,999,000 after acquiring an additional 5,139 shares in the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 113.8% during the 1st quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 12,388 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,006,000 after purchasing an additional 6,595 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth $645,000. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 5,049 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,448,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $452.04 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $426.51 and a 200-day moving average of $425.75. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $519.68. The stock has a market cap of $114.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.88 and a beta of 0.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The company had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.38 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total value of $6,384,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,202,600. This trade represents a 27.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total transaction of $28,650,425.20. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at $10,792,479.20. The trade was a 72.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,073 shares of company stock valued at $67,326,816. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $475.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $458.00 to $456.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $423.00 to $415.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $498.42.

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.