Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,746,012 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 58,176 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 1.06% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $1,287,111,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Capital World Investors raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $10,687,339,000 after purchasing an additional 3,761,414 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,676,518 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,479,011,000 after acquiring an additional 394,338 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,401,000,000 after acquiring an additional 2,176,218 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,782,374 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,999,080,000 after acquiring an additional 837,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,237,877,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $485.37 on Monday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $341.85 and a 52 week high of $510.64. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $483.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $450.41. The company has a market cap of $125.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.50 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.53 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total value of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at $14,198,300.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Reshma Kewalramani sold 15,202 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.00, for a total value of $7,555,394.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 106,172 shares in the company, valued at $52,767,484. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.72, for a total transaction of $1,075,521.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,198,300.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 34,047 shares of company stock worth $16,843,806. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price objective (up from $508.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $505.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $371.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $485.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.