Richardson Financial Services Inc. Acquires Shares of 597 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 597 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 74,265 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,825,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,771 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,484,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $4,226,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth about $10,886,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 34.4% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 411,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $143,090,000 after purchasing an additional 105,232 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, April 15th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $462.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $438.48.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total transaction of $715,205.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.00, for a total value of $715,205.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,467,918. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 7,073 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $448.00, for a total value of $3,168,704.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,920,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,086 shares of company stock valued at $11,983,266 over the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded up $1.70 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $480.73. 641,768 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,164,252. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $430.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $418.87. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $335.82 and a one year high of $486.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a current ratio of 3.50. The company has a market cap of $124.05 billion, a PE ratio of 31.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.41.

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. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 39.46% and a return on equity of 23.08%. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.67 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.22 EPS for the current year.

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.