Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $100.91 Million Stock Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lowered its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 75.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 208,140 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 631,532 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.08% of Vertex Pharmaceuticals worth $100,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 46.2% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 95 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 30.3% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 99 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VRTX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $555.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Leerink Partners reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $503.00 price target (down previously from $550.00) on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $515.04.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.9%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $3.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $456.38. 275,877 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,605,504. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $377.85 and a fifty-two week high of $519.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.20 billion, a P/E ratio of -207.45, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.41. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $463.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $460.26.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.85 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 4.86%. The company's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.76 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 15.63 earnings per share for the current year.

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.