Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) Shares Sold by Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. lowered its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 28.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,407 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 3,355 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals accounts for about 1.0% of Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,076,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 45.5% in the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 112 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 46.2% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 95 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Erste Group Bank downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Leerink Partners reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $503.00 price target (down from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Fourteen investment 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $511.71.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX traded down $8.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $464.20. 988,008 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,424,508. The company has a market cap of $119.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -118.42 and a beta of 0.41. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $377.85 and a 12-month high of $519.88. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $447.15 and a 200 day moving average of $461.56. The company has a quick ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

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 (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 company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.76 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

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.