Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 41,778 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,509,206 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,778 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $614,081,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. abrdn plc lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 196.0% during the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 581,018 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $236,410,000 after purchasing an additional 384,730 shares in the last quarter. BSN CAPITAL PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,378,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,944,913 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,605,146,000 after acquiring an additional 147,248 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,813,563 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $978,388,000 after acquiring an additional 131,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21,750.1% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 115,150 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $46,853,000 after acquiring an additional 114,623 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $7.74 on Tuesday, hitting $410.24. The stock had a trading volume of 1,614,025 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,230,101. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $408.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $400.75. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $320.01 and a one year high of $448.40. The company has a quick ratio of 3.78, a current ratio of 3.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market cap of $106.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.53, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $1.10. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Maxim Group downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $445.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $456.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $432.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares in the company, valued at $31,819,732.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 1,374 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was 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 $4,066,242.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.24, for a total value of $1,804,930.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.