Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Acquired by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,126 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 554 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,272,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,751,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 804 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 410 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $191,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in the third quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 892 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $416.96 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $444.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $466.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.52% and a negative return on equity of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on VRTX. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $562.00 to $586.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $361.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.38.

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.