Swiss National Bank Sells 38,000 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Swiss National Bank lowered its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 740,300 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 38,000 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $289,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.2% during the second quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,123 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $945,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $565,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.5% during the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 349 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Defined Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Defined Wealth Management LLC now owns 932 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $606.00 to $607.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. HC Wainwright set a $591.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Leerink Partners upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total transaction of $2,394,361.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,562,646.35. This trade represents a 21.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 91,156 shares of company stock worth $42,845,497 over the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $456.69 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $467.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $435.35. The stock has a market cap of $116.01 billion, a PE ratio of 29.79 and a beta of 0.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. Analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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.