Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Acquired by Calamos Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 77.1% in the first quarter, buying an additional 33,917 shares and bringing its total holding to 77,886 shares worth about $34.8 million.
• Vertex reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.47 topping estimates and revenue of $2.99 billion, while sales rose 8.3% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with 21 Buy ratings, 4 Hold ratings, and a consensus price target of $559.61; several firms recently raised their targets on the stock.

Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 77.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 77,886 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 33,917 shares during the quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $34,779,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VRTX. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth $64,417,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 447,169 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $202,612,000 after buying an additional 86,084 shares during the period. Cooper Financial Group increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 130.2% during the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,341 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,421,000 after acquiring an additional 3,021 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 832,853 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $377,582,000 after buying an additional 69,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 10.4% in the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 63,945 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $25,043,000 after acquiring an additional 6,045 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Duncan Mckechnie sold 1,541 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.00, for a total value of $799,779.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,001 shares in the company, valued at $5,709,519. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their position. 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 three months, insiders sold 18,874 shares of company stock worth $8,707,966. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $480.25 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a twelve month low of $362.50 and a twelve month high of $533.67. The firm has a market cap of $121.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $458.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $458.47.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 23.86%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.06 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on VRTX shares. Maxim Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $543.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $545.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $607.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Vertex Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $559.61.

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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