Merit Financial Group LLC Buys 2,880 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holding in Vertex by 47.3%, acquiring 2,880 shares to own 8,967 shares worth about $4,065,000 at the end of the quarter.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently — including executive sales of 620 and 4,910 shares — with a total of 80,431 shares sold (~$37.9 million) in the past 90 days, and insiders now own just 0.20% of the stock.
• Analysts are largely positive, giving Vertex a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $555, while the stock trades with a market cap of $112.2 billion and a PE ratio near 28.8.

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 47.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,967 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,880 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 544,978 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $213,435,000 after acquiring an additional 20,053 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $64,417,000. Leuthold Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $5,030,000. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $956,000. Finally, Advisory Resource Group bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,286,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 620 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $301,537.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,542,573.40. This represents a 7.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 4,910 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,562,646.35. This represents a 21.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 80,431 shares of company stock worth $37,875,167 in the last ninety days. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $441.20 on Monday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $461.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $448.09. The stock has a market cap of $112.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.78, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.36. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $362.50 and a fifty-two week high of $510.77.

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 return on equity of 24.30% and a net margin of 32.94%.The company had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.98 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VRTX shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $456.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, HC Wainwright upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $591.00 to $641.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $555.00.

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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