Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Takes $94.96 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 242,462 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $94,958,000. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for 0.3% of Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 319,467 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $125,116,000 after purchasing an additional 5,786 shares during the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,373,000. Waldron Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the third quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,300 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,684,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Boomfish Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.8% in the third quarter. Boomfish Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,647 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McAdam LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the 3rd quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 740 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 9,532 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $461.00, for a total value of $4,394,252.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,391,225. This trade represents a 20.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 165,105 shares of company stock valued at $73,858,523. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $517.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Leerink Partners upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $503.80.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2%

VRTX opened at $442.08 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $447.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $426.90. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $519.68. The company has a market cap of $112.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.18 and a beta of 0.31.

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 return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 31.35%.The company had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.