Triasima Portfolio Management inc. Sells 5,447 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Triasima Portfolio Management inc. decreased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 46.7% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,213 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 5,447 shares during the quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc.’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 978 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $5,848,000. Cibc World Markets Corp lifted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 46,339 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $18,661,000 after purchasing an additional 5,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 7,335 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,954,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on VRTX. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $535.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $511.71.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $464.20 on Wednesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $377.85 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $447.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $461.58. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market cap of $119.21 billion, a PE ratio of -118.42 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.29 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 8.91% and a negative return on equity of 3.36%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.76 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.