Twin Capital Management Inc. Acquires New Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Twin Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,905 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $746,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $1,593,974,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 6,151,505 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,738,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089,063 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 214.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 763,703 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $299,097,000 after buying an additional 520,949 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,973,777 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,673,126,000 after buying an additional 482,616 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,378,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,949,228,000 after buying an additional 424,808 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on VRTX. Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $455.00 to $445.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $455.00 to $546.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $522.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 4.2%

Shares of VRTX opened at $477.92 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.68. The stock has a market cap of $121.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.70 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $457.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $427.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $456.00, for a total value of $6,384,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,202,600. This represents a 27.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 63,781 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $449.20, for a total value of $28,650,425.20. Following the sale, the chairman owned 24,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,792,479.20. This trade represents a 72.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 165,105 shares of company stock worth $73,858,523 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.