ABC Arbitrage SA Acquires Shares of 3,750 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,750 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $1,510,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Edgewood Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 7,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 1,546,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $719,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,983 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $435,899,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 18.1% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,550,386 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,581,373,000 after buying an additional 851,054 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,798,870 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,231,858,000 after purchasing an additional 704,421 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 169.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 839,672 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $338,136,000 after buying an additional 528,029 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on VRTX shares. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $433.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $402.00 to $407.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $505.57.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 2.1 %

VRTX traded up $9.65 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $471.76. 1,454,541 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,543,211. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. 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 stock has a market cap of $121.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -214.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.41. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $435.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $460.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued 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 analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 244 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.06, for a total value of $111,034.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,805,286.70. This trade represents a 0.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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.