Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Purchased by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 519,668 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,665 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned about 0.20% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $209,270,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.3% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 70.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 58 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,236 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $900,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $497,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,807,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.0 %

VRTX stock opened at $492.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $476.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $463.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -223.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.99 by ($0.45). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $500.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $506.70.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total transaction of $111,034.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares in the company, valued at $30,805,286.70. The trade was a 0.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.