Empowered Funds LLC Buys Shares of 50,197 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC purchased 50,197 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter, valued at approximately $24.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.96% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a favorable view of Vertex, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $563.50; recent firms raised their targets or ratings.
• Vertex reported quarterly revenue of $3.33 billion, up 12.5% year over year and above estimates, while EPS of $4.73 narrowly missed consensus by $0.01. Shares opened at $547.55, near their 52-week high.

Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 50,197 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $24,934,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $6,178,000. Equitable Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $1,451,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter valued at $1,366,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $11,501,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at $48,713,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $615.00 to $617.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $500.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $563.50.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX opened at $547.55 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $374.17 and a fifty-two week high of $555.69. The stock has a market cap of $138.97 billion, a PE ratio of 31.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $500.28 and a 200-day moving average of $468.15.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.74 by ($0.01). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.09% and a net margin of 35.00%.The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.52 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Ourania Tatsis sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.99, for a total transaction of $787,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,793,071.79. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total transaction of $799,779.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,001 shares in the company, valued at $5,709,519. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,464 shares of company stock valued at $4,959,397. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

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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