Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $7.46 Million Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management nearly doubled its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake in the fourth quarter, ending with 16,453 shares worth about $7.46 million.
• Insider selling continued, with EVP Jonathan Biller and CMO Carmen Bozic both selling shares; insiders sold a total of 21,189 shares over the last 90 days.
• Vertex reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.47 per share on revenue of $2.99 billion, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $555.17.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 98.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,453 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,146 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $7,459,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Archer Investment Corp boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 74 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 345.0% during the third quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 89 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $459,600.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 13,659 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,643,054.65. The trade was a 6.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 6,988 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $3,144,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 26,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,739,600. This trade represents a 21.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,189 shares of company stock valued at $9,923,036. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of VRTX stock opened at $434.52 on Friday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $441.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $450.85. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $507.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.77, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on VRTX. Maxim Group raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vertex Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $555.17.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

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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