2,019 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Purchased by Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd

Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 2,019 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,003,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth approximately $531,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $67,176,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,328,000. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,536,000. Finally, Elefante Mark B acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,612,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on VRTX. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $560.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $436.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $548.05 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $139.10 billion, a PE ratio of 31.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $374.17 and a 12-month high of $555.32. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $492.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $465.88.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 4,062 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $1,827,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 16,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,628,850. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,709,519. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.