Provident Investment Management Inc. Has $67.67 Million Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Provident Investment Management trimmed its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, but the position remained sizable at 149,258 shares worth about $67.7 million. Vertex was still the firm’s fourth-largest holding and made up roughly 6.2% of its portfolio.
• Vertex reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.47 beating estimates by $0.23 and revenue of $2.99 billion matching expectations. Revenue rose 8.3% year over year, and analysts now expect full-year EPS of 16.96.
• Recent sentiment around the stock is mixed but generally positive: insiders sold shares over the last 90 days, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $555.17.

Provident Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 149,258 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 4,148 shares during the quarter. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up about 6.2% of Provident Investment Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Provident Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $67,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,689,059 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,836,550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,053,156 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 16,553,281 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $6,482,978,000 after buying an additional 444,990 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1,373.1% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 361,085 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $140,119,000 after buying an additional 336,573 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 520.1% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 381,195 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $149,291,000 after buying an additional 319,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,216,865 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $9,484,293,000 after buying an additional 243,088 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 2,329 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $481.79, for a total transaction of $1,122,088.91. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 35,405 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,057,774.95. The trade was a 6.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $459,600.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,659 shares in the company, valued at $6,643,054.65. The trade was a 6.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 81,853 shares of company stock worth $38,479,135 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VRTX opened at $435.17 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $448.49 and its 200 day moving average is $449.92. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1 year low of $362.50 and a 1 year high of $507.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.06 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.96 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VRTX. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target 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 research note on Sunday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $590.00 price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $555.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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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