Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Stock Position Lifted by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 26,640 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,596 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $12,390,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of VRTX stock traded down $2.51 on Thursday, reaching $464.56. 1,006,922 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,191,738. The company has a market capitalization of $119.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -233.45 and a beta of 0.39. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $346.29 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $473.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $474.28.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.67 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at $2,217,500. This trade represents a 12.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,987,006. The trade was a 27.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,445 shares of company stock worth $2,218,394 in the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on VRTX shares. Citigroup began coverage on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $504.38.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.