Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Cuts Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky trimmed its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,581 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 25,599 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $16,676,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 243.3% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 103 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Bryce Point Capital LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 57.0% during the second quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC now owns 1,956 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $871,000 after purchasing an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.6% in the 2nd quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC now owns 539 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Amit Sachdev sold 1,846 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $897,802.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 55,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,026,469.50. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $459,600.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,643,054.65. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 91,156 shares of company stock valued at $42,845,497 in the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $474.27 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.68. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $467.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $433.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.94 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. UBS Group raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $590.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $570.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $606.00 to $607.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $411.00 to $441.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.00.

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.