Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Purchased by China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• China Universal Asset Management increased its stake in Vertex by 6.5% in Q4, buying 2,933 shares to hold 48,047 shares worth about $21.78 million, making VRTX its 11th-largest holding (1.7% of the fund).
• Insiders have been net sellers: executives Joy Liu and Mark Bunnage recently sold shares, and insiders disposed of 80,431 shares (≈$37.88M) over the past 90 days, with corporate insiders now owning just 0.20% of the stock.
• Wall Street sentiment remains broadly positive with a consensus "Moderate Buy" and a $555 target after several firms raised price targets; VRTX trades at a ~28.4 P/E and has a market cap of roughly $110.7 billion.

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,047 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,933 shares during the period. Vertex Pharmaceuticals makes up 1.7% of China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $21,783,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 1.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,216,865 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $9,484,293,000 after purchasing an additional 243,088 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 444,990 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 77.9% in 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 during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.3% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,522,586 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,771,226,000 after purchasing an additional 144,266 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 4.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,276,927 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $891,744,000 after purchasing an additional 95,565 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Joy Liu sold 978 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $449.17, for a total value of $439,288.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,833 shares in the company, valued at $9,806,728.61. This trade represents a 4.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Mark E. Bunnage sold 620 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total value of $301,537.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,542,573.40. This represents a 7.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 80,431 shares of company stock valued at $37,875,167 over the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $435.10 on Friday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 1-year low of $362.50 and a 1-year high of $510.77. The stock has a market cap of $110.67 billion, a PE ratio of 28.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.36. The stock's fifty day moving average is $459.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $448.37.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The pharmaceutical company reported $5.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.05 by ($0.02). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 32.94% and a return on equity of 24.30%. The business had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.98 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VRTX. Weiss Ratings lowered Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Evercore lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $475.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Oppenheimer lifted 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, Bank of America lifted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $571.00 to $598.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $555.00.

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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