Meritage Portfolio Management Purchases 15,006 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Meritage Portfolio Management raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 61.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,348 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,006 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals comprises 1.1% of Meritage Portfolio Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $16,010,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 97.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 67 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 76 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $25,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total transaction of $577,409.76. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,066,242.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 354 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.70, for a total transaction of $150,697.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,755,762.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $577,409.76. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,066,242.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock valued at $5,203,249 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $0.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $398.11. The company had a trading volume of 307,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,223,085. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $320.01 and a one year high of $448.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.99 and a quick ratio of 3.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $102.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.63, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.35. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $412.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $398.37.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.85 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on VRTX. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $371.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, April 12th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Maxim Group lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $429.45.

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.