AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Sells 91,132 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd decreased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 41.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 127,943 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 91,132 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $62,029,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $11,406,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,993 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,258,288 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,366,113,000 after acquiring an additional 98,654 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,426,746 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,916,084 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,382,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,214 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,062,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,454,373,000 after buying an additional 744,680 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX traded down $3.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $459.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 975,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,420,625. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $449.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $462.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $118.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -117.30 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 8.91% and a negative return on equity of 3.36%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.85 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.76 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on VRTX. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $464.00 to $460.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 20th. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $511.71.

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.

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