Wealthfront Advisers LLC Makes New $20.67 Million Investment in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 41,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,668,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Community Financial Services Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 103.7% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 55 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $590.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

VRTX stock opened at $528.19 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.74, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.30. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $486.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $464.31. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $374.17 and a fifty-two week high of $546.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.00% and a return on equity of 23.09%. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,709,519. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 10,464 shares of company stock worth $4,959,397 in the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex’s marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.