Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Purchases Shares of 135,236 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 135,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,176,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.05% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $6,328,000. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,536,000. Elefante Mark B purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,612,000. Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $13,713,000. Finally, Vista Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $813,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,709,519. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 596 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $482.50, for a total transaction of $287,570.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 15,337 shares in the company, valued at $7,400,102.50. The trade was a 3.74% 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. Insiders sold 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $548.05 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $492.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $465.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.90, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $374.17 and a 1 year high of $555.32.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.23 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.52 EPS. Analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $615.00 to $617.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $563.50.

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.