Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX Shares Sold by Strs Ohio

Key Points

• Strs Ohio cut its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 5.3% in the first quarter, selling 4,115 shares and ending with 74,163 shares valued at about $33.1 million.
• Vertex saw notable insider selling, including sales by EVP Joy Liu and CMO Carmen Bozic; over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,833 shares worth about $7.1 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the stock despite one recent downgrade: Vertex has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with 21 Buy ratings and an average price target of $555.91.

Strs Ohio decreased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 74,163 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 4,115 shares during the period. Strs Ohio's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $33,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% during the 4th quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 90.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

In other news, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,729 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CMO Carmen Bozic sold 596 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $482.50, for a total value of $287,570.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 15,337 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,400,102.50. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,833 shares of company stock worth $7,120,702. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $540.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $437.00 to $436.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $541.00 to $543.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $555.91.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Vertex Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $528.04 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $449.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $456.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $134.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.29. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $362.50 and a one year high of $529.14.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for 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%. Vertex Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.06 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current year.

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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