Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. trimmed its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 27.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,253 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 5,750 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 46.2% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 95 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on VRTX. Wells Fargo & Company raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wolfe Research cut Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $439.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, HC Wainwright decreased their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $478.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $497.10.
View Our Latest Analysis on Vertex Pharmaceuticals
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.1%
NASDAQ:VRTX traded up $8.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $395.92. 1,913,607 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,284,947. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52-week low of $362.50 and a 52-week high of $519.88. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $447.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $464.48. The company has a market cap of $101.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.30 and a beta of 0.44.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%. The company had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($12.83) EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, Director Bruce I. Sachs purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $389.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 45,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,535,600. This trade represents a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.
About Vertex Pharmaceuticals
(
Free Report)
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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