Whittier Trust Co. Increases Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 33.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,045 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of VRTX. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. The trade was a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.34, for a total transaction of $251,930.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 58,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,825,928.26. This represents a 0.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of several analyst reports. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $522.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $407.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $506.70.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $503.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $129.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -228.73, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $467.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $462.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.86% and a negative return on equity of 2.02%. Sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.