Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Decreases Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 34.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 63,057 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 33,779 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $25,393,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.7 %

VRTX stock opened at $489.10 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $377.85 and a 52 week high of $519.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -222.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $486.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $465.31.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued 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 return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. Equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VRTX shares. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $460.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $533.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $408.00 to $424.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $459.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $512.41.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company’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 in the company, valued at $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 310 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.83, for a total value of $142,547.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 64,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,438,776.43. This represents a 0.48 % 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 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.