Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH Trims Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH lowered its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 13.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,919 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 1,648 shares during the period. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $4,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cim LLC increased its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Cim LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,286,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $320,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $172,000. Menard Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 1,630 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $656,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $136,720,000. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $1.99 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $447.09. 882,371 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,418,078. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $377.85 and a 12 month high of $519.88. The stock's fifty day moving average is $472.28 and its 200-day moving average is $461.84. The stock has a market cap of $114.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -203.22, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.51.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.06 EPS 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 analysts' expectations of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.76 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets set a $545.00 price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $462.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $420.00 to $423.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $515.04.

Insider Transactions at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP David Altshuler sold 3,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $1,615,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,256,000. This represents a 10.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Company 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.