US Asset Management LLC Invests $218,000 in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

US Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 537 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. abrdn plc lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 196.0% in the 4th 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 during the period. 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 position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,944,913 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,605,146,000 after buying an additional 147,248 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.9% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake 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 in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VRTX. StockNews.com raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $498.00 to $466.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $515.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $446.00 to $472.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $432.18.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $418.99. 676,155 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,228,628. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $407.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $400.88. The company has a market cap of $108.29 billion, a PE ratio of 30.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.78, a current ratio of 3.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $320.01 and a 12-month high of $448.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $1.10. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 36.68% and a return on equity of 21.91%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.67 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 14.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total value of $1,114,218.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 27,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,596,934.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, COO Stuart A. Arbuckle sold 4,295 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 value of $1,804,930.80. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 75,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,819,732.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 2,656 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $419.51, for a total value of $1,114,218.56. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 27,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,596,934.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,381 shares of company stock worth $5,203,249. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.