Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by Carmignac Gestion

Carmignac Gestion reduced its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 22.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148,199 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 43,372 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for approximately 1.0% of Carmignac Gestion’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Carmignac Gestion’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $66,160,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $477.10 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $470.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $460.33. The company has a market cap of $121.09 billion, a PE ratio of 28.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $533.67.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total transaction of $799,779.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,709,519. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,452 shares of company stock worth $8,103,997. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 28th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $542.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $559.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.