Lbp Am Sa Sells 5,818 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

LBP AM SA reduced its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 9.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,541 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 5,818 shares during the quarter. LBP AM SA's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $25,958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aries Wealth Management bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $293,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $22,954,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 45.0% in the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,421 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,113,000 after buying an additional 1,994 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 25.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,002 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,425,000 after buying an additional 1,005 shares during the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 189.7% in the fourth quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 359,285 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $139,724,000 after buying an additional 235,265 shares during the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ VRTX traded down $10.68 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $468.85. The company had a trading volume of 892,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,424,305. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $377.85 and a twelve month high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 2.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.40 billion, a PE ratio of -119.60 and a beta of 0.41. The stock's 50 day moving average is $447.71 and its 200-day moving average is $460.40.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.29 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 3.36% and a negative net margin of 8.91%. The company's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.76 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on VRTX shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $535.00 target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $512.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $511.62.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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.