15,200 Shares in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Purchased by Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC established a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by purchasing 15,200 shares worth about $5.95 million in Q3, making the stock its 18th-largest holding (1.2% of the fund).
• Corporate insiders have sold 91,156 shares valued at roughly $42.8 million in the last 90 days, and insiders now own just 0.20% of the company.
• Analysts are broadly positive on VRTX, with 22 Buy ratings and five Holds and an average price target of about $542, giving the stock a consensus "Moderate Buy."

Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,200 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $5,953,000. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up 1.2% of Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,216,865 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,484,293,000 after acquiring an additional 243,088 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,928,747 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,627,135,000 after purchasing an additional 166,987 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,378,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,949,228,000 after purchasing an additional 424,808 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 3,813,378 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,697,716,000 after purchasing an additional 65,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth $1,593,974,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total value of $2,394,361.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 17,559 shares in the company, valued at $8,562,646.35. This trade represents a 21.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 2,021 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total value of $930,529.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,945,993.02. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 91,156 shares of company stock valued at $42,845,497 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRTX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Leerink Partners increased their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $540.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. HC Wainwright set a $591.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $542.00.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $456.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $116.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.79 and a beta of 0.31. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $467.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $435.06. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.68.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex's marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.

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