MWA Asset Management Purchases 1,739 Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Key Points

• MWA Asset Management increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 54.6%, acquiring an additional 1,739 shares, making Vertex around 1.7% of its investment portfolio.
• Several institutional investors have also boosted their holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals, with 90.96% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• Vertex Pharmaceuticals' quarterly earnings report indicated a loss per share of $4.06, missing the consensus estimate, along with revenue of $2.77 billion, below expectations.

MWA Asset Management raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 54.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,925 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,739 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up about 1.7% of MWA Asset Management's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. MWA Asset Management's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,388,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 60,572.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,425,070 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,175,722,000 after buying an additional 2,421,073 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 28,325,695 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $11,406,667,000 after acquiring an additional 1,514,993 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,428,951 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $4,199,713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,426,746 shares during the last quarter. Edgewood Management LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 91.2% in the 4th quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,956,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,190,626,000 after acquiring an additional 1,410,238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,062,442 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,454,373,000 after purchasing an additional 744,680 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $97.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $374.98. The company had a trading volume of 10,722,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,171,126. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $373.19 and a 1-year high of $519.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.65 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $454.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $466.81. The stock has a market cap of $96.29 billion, a PE ratio of 26.80 and a beta of 0.44.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 31.86% and a return on equity of 24.28%. The business's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($12.83) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on VRTX. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $582.00 to $553.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $557.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $495.21.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals 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.