3,727 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Purchased by Quantbot Technologies LP

Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,727 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,460,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 110.0% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 2,021 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total transaction of $930,529.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,945,993.02. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 4,500 shares of the company’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 transaction of $2,137,455.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,293 shares in the company, valued at $20,088,752.07. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 91,156 shares of company stock valued at $42,845,497 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of VRTX opened at $460.82 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $467.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $434.29. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.06 billion, a PE ratio of 30.06 and a beta of 0.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The business had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VRTX. Evercore boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $540.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.00.

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.