Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. Takes $29.37 Million Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 75,000 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,373,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 689 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $307,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.9% in the second quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $570,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the second quarter. Newman Dignan & Sheerar Inc. now owns 786 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,635 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $728,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.4% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 323 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $144,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $548.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $495.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $503.80.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $474.99, for a total value of $2,137,455.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Charles F. Wagner, Jr. sold 9,532 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $461.00, for a total value of $4,394,252.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 37,725 shares in the company, valued at $17,391,225. This trade represents a 20.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 165,105 shares of company stock worth $73,858,523. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of VRTX opened at $442.08 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $447.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $426.90. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $362.50 and a 12-month high of $519.68. The firm has a market cap of $112.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.18 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.58 by $0.22. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.35% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.38 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

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.