Jones Kertz & Associates Inc. Invests $1.82 Million in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Jones Kertz & Associates opened a new position in Vertex, buying 4,004 shares valued at about $1.82 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 90.96% of VRTX.
• Insiders sold 80,431 shares worth about $37.9 million in the last quarter, including EVP Jonathan Biller and EVP Duncan Mckechnie, both of whom materially reduced their holdings.
• Analysts remain broadly positive with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $555; Vertex slightly missed EPS ($5.03 vs. $5.05) but revenue rose 9.5% to $3.19 billion, and the stock trades near $439 with a $111.7 billion market cap.

Jones Kertz & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,004 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $1,815,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the second quarter worth about $228,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.0% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,929 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $5,311,000 after acquiring an additional 986 shares during the period. ICW Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.0% in the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 26.3% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,246,000 after acquiring an additional 1,518 shares during the period. 90.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In related news, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 1,925 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.43, for a total value of $886,327.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,585,692.17. This trade represents a 8.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.65, for a total transaction of $2,394,361.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,562,646.35. The trade was a 21.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 80,431 shares of company stock worth $37,875,167 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $546.00 to $541.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $411.00 to $441.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Maxim Group raised shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $577.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $555.00.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

VRTX stock opened at $439.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $460.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $448.30. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $362.50 and a fifty-two week high of $510.77. The firm has a market cap of $111.71 billion, a PE ratio of 28.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.36.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The business had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.18 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.98 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.89 EPS for the current year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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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