Ignite Planners LLC Purchases Shares of 607 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Ignite Planners LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 607 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,374,948,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,175,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,421,073 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,426,746 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 91.2% in the 4th quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,956,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,190,626,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410,238 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $2.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $469.65. 1,176,853 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,521,231. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $452.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $464.26. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.65 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The stock has a market cap of $120.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -119.81 and a beta of 0.41.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) 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 analysts' expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.76 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $420.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $442.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Leerink Partners reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $503.00 price target (down from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $535.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $512.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.