AIA Group Ltd Acquires 1,522 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 30,786 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 1,522 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $14,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management raised 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,987,006. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sangeeta N. Bhatia sold 646 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $323,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,435 shares of the company’s stock, 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 SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 9,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,987,006. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on VRTX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $510.00 to $503.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $495.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.8 %

VRTX stock opened at $502.45 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $474.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $466.95. The company has a quick ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $341.90 and a 12 month high of $510.64.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.04 EPS for the current year.

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.