The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Cuts Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 553,243 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 4,470 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.22% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $247,045,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 period. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $479.00 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $466.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $459.95. The firm has a market cap of $121.57 billion, a PE ratio of 28.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.29. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $362.50 and a 52 week high of $533.67.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.06 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.01 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $612.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $559.61.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total value of $469,222.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total value of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,874 shares of company stock worth $8,707,966. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company 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.