Pegasus Asset Management Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Pegasus Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 1.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,670 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 62 shares during the period. Pegasus Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,637,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Annapolis Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 75 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of VRTX traded down $2.51 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $475.58. The stock had a trading volume of 494,960 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,172,097. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $341.90 and a 1 year high of $510.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $475.48 and its 200 day moving average is $460.75. The firm has a market cap of $122.72 billion, a PE ratio of 30.82 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.26.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($12.54) by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.66 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.45% and a negative net margin of 4.74%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.53 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $371.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $545.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $431.00 to $425.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $492.92.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total transaction of $1,086,990.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 23,259 shares in the company, valued at $11,088,728.25. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,217,500. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.75, for a total transaction of $1,086,990.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 23,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,088,728.25. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,285 shares of company stock worth $7,101,755 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.