Koss Olinger Consulting LLC Acquires Shares of 998 Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Key Points

• Koss Olinger Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals, purchasing 998 shares valued at approximately $484,000. This marks a significant institutional investment in the company during the first quarter.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals recently posted strong quarterly earnings, reporting an EPS of $4.52 which exceeded estimates, alongside a revenue of $2.94 billion, reflecting an 11.3% year-over-year increase.
• The stock has a current market cap of $93.98 billion and analysts maintain a consensus of a "Moderate Buy" rating with a target price of $497.10.

Koss Olinger Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 998 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $484,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of VRTX. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,783,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 40.0% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 98,789 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $39,784,000 after acquiring an additional 28,240 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 17,127 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $6,897,000 after acquiring an additional 2,073 shares during the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $925,000. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 15,902 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $6,404,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs bought 5,000 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $389.68 per share, with a total value of $1,948,400.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 45,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,535,600. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VRTX. HC Wainwright reduced their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $478.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Leerink Partnrs lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $497.10.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $8.15 on Wednesday, hitting $395.92. The company had a trading volume of 1,911,169 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,648,344. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.30 and a beta of 0.44. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $519.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $448.18 and a 200-day moving average of $464.96.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 31.86%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($12.83) earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.