Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Bought by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 10.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,226 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,632 shares during the quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,692,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% in the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total transaction of $799,779.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,709,519. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,874 shares of company stock valued at $8,707,966. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Maxim Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $559.61.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $476.31 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $120.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.29. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $459.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $458.56. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $533.67.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.06 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.03 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.