Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $37.13 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lessened its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 27.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 92,192 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 35,233 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $37,126,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during 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. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $439.73 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $436.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $465.13. 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 Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VRTX. Oppenheimer lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $426.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, HC Wainwright cut their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $600.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.38.

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.