Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft Purchases New Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft opened a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter, buying 13,604 shares valued at about $6.2 million.
• Institutional ownership remains extremely high, with several large funds such as Vanguard and Capital Research increasing their stakes; institutions now own 90.96% of Vertex.
• Vertex reported strong quarterly results, posting $4.47 EPS versus expectations of $4.24 and revenue of $2.99 billion, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target of $555.17.

Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 13,604 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $6,165,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 16,553,281 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $6,482,978,000 after acquiring an additional 444,990 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,836,550,000 after acquiring an additional 2,053,156 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,522,586 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,771,226,000 after acquiring an additional 144,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,276,927 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $891,744,000 after acquiring an additional 95,565 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VRTX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $590.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Maxim Group upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $541.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $555.17.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,329 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $481.79, for a total value of $1,122,088.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 35,405 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,057,774.95. This represents a 6.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kristen Ambrose sold 223 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $108,456.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,981 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,395,209.35. This trade represents a 3.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 74,314 shares of company stock valued at $35,007,953. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $453.06 on Thursday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $507.92. The stock has a market cap of $114.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $446.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $450.29.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.96 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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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