Advisors Capital Management LLC Has $5.74 Million Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Advisors Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,246 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 295 shares during the quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $5,737,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 108.2% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 102 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VRTX shares. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $460.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $512.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX opened at $484.22 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.69. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $484.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $464.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.34 billion, a PE ratio of -220.10, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88.

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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total transaction of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. The trade was a 0.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,512 shares in the company, 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 have sold a total of 4,315 shares of company stock valued at $2,121,012 over the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.