Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board trimmed its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 27.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,920 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 4,123 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at $34,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total value of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,755,762.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded up $5.53 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $447.53. 1,084,479 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,213,210. The firm has a market cap of $115.49 billion, a PE ratio of 28.68, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $410.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $405.48. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $320.01 and a 12 month high of $449.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a current ratio of 3.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.08% and a net margin of 39.46%. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $371.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Maxim Group cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $332.00 to $379.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $432.18.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.