Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,999 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 291 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,832,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. FRG Family Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,235 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 74.5% in the 4th quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 23,615 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,510,000 after buying an additional 10,084 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 116,793 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $47,033,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,552 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,028,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Finally, DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $479,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on VRTX. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $490.00 to $494.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $408.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $512.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 1.8 %

VRTX stock opened at $484.22 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 firm has a market cap of $124.34 billion, a PE ratio of -220.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $484.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $464.27.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The pharmaceutical company reported $3.54 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 530 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,825,928.26. The trade was a 0.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 26,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This trade represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,315 shares of company stock worth $2,121,012 in the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.